What We're Hearing

Remember how the Federal government said it's okay to do FHA streamlined refis with LTVs up to 125%? In a new memo to loan brokers Franklin American Mortgage says it will only go as high as 100% on the LTV, citing "continued constrictions" in the secondary market... Will the nonperforming loan (NPL) auction market finally begin heating up next year? It's hard to tell, but FDIC chief Sheila Bair made it clear last week that she wants the agency to play a role in legacy loan auctions by open institutions. Plus, there's $5 billion (at least) in whole loans the agency owns from dead banks. Meanwhile, there's talk that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are beginning to ask the "big question" which is this: should we be selling our NPLs too? For the complete analysis see the Monday edition of National Mortgage News. Don't subscribe? Call: (800)221-1809...Friday, December 4, is "e" day -- that would be the new employment numbers from the federal government. Will the 10.2% jobless number climb higher? Economists and analysts keep telling us about lackluster reports on consumer confidence and how it's affecting everything from home buying to retail sales and beyond. As my teenage daughter would say, "Duh." I've said this before and I will say it again: the job picture needs to come back in earnest before we see any meaningful recovery in housing. The jobless are anxious about their prospects and workers who have managed to stay employed are left wondering, "Am I next?" Even though jobless claims are starting to level off, we still see reports of profitable businesses like Verizon and AOL cutting heads...PennyMac Mortgage Investment Trustchief executive Stan Kurland is putting his money where his mouth is regarding the future of his publicly traded vulture fund, recently purchasing $429,000 worth of stock in the open market. The REIT has kept a low profile since going public this summer. A spokeswoman for the company said, "We're keeping our heads down, doing good work here"...The paperback version of "Chain of Blame, How Wall Street Caused the Mortgage and Credit Crisis" will be out in late January with new chapters on TARP, vulture funds and the rise of the "mortgage cartel." I co-authored the book with Matt Padilla of The Orange County Register...Need a ranking of the top GNMA issuers in the third quarter? It's in the upcoming issue of NMN's Quarterly Data Report. To order a copy send an email to: Deartra.Todd@SourceMedia.com... WASHINGTON NEWS: A 10% risk retention requirement for mortgage securitizations? Congress is softening its stance. See Brian Collins' story in Monday's NMN.DATA NOTICE #1: Just a reminder but the new Mortgagestats.com data product is ready. M-Stats (which you can subscribe to) is web-based and incorporates both the Quarterly Data Report and our annual Mortgage Industry Directory. Among other things, it has annual rankings on the top 400 lenders and servicers, including breakdowns on retail, wholesale, and correspondent - and news archives. There's contact info too - and plenty of data on servicing. And here's the best part: you get quarterly updates. To see a sample send an email to: Deartra.Todd@SourceMedia.com. Site licenses are available.DATA NOTICE #2: Even though we have just launched our new MortgageStats.com product you can still subscribe to the Quarterly Data Report, a spreadsheet product that provides readers with quarterly rankings on the nation's top lenders and servicers. There's also a companion product called the 'Alt-QDR' which provides rankings on second liens, jumbos and much more. Again, shoot an email to: Deartra.Todd@SourceMedia.com.THE LAST WORD: Read Managing REO, the only publication dedicated to covering the clean up of the nation's housing and loan markets. For a free sample copy send an email to: Jennifer.Harmon@SourceMedia.com.