What We're Hearing

Everywhere you look, there's loan "buyback" requests: Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are sticking it to their seller/servicers, the Federal Home Loan Banks are trying to get Wall Street firms to repurchase the crummy nonprime ABS sold to them a few years ago, and large correspondents are jamming product back to the little guys. Well, at least, the Government National Mortgage Association hasn't gone that route -- yet. Or is that the next shoe to drop in the industry? Meanwhile, last week it appeared that a large wholesaler was ready to introduce a new "stated income" program. (Don't faint.) But alas, there was no such program. The way the story was told to me, a new account executive mislabeled a program as such. "It turned out that the new program was really a Fannie 'DU Plus' at 110% with no debt ratio and a Freddie HARP up to 125% at no debt ratios," one loan officer told us. Readers of this website should be familiar with both Fannie DU Plus, and HARP...