Origination

When Noel Watts, the vice president of mortgage banking at Marshall & Ilsley Bank, set out to upgrade the lender's origination platform two years ago, he expected interest rates to rise and mortgage volume to plummet.

Subprime credit default swap prices swung upward for the sixth straight month in April, making it the longest sustained rally of this type seen since 2007 -- and it may continue, according to Fitch Solutions.

The National Reverse Mortgage Lenders Association/RiskSpan Reverse Mortgage Market Index fell by 0.3% between the third and fourth quarters of 2010 as senior's home equity levels fell by $11 billion during the period.

U.S. home prices fell 1.5% in March after declining 2.1% in February, according to the newly released CoreLogic house price index, which includes foreclosure and short sales.

Judging from the audience's response at a special session on mortgage credit during the National Association of Realtors' Midyear Legislative Meetings in Washington, appraisals are still a big issue for front-line realty agents.

Certain small banks have stopped originating Federal Housing Administration loans because of the costs of a new audit requirement that went into effect April 1, according to the Independent Community Bankers of America.

Florida existing home sales increased 13% and existing condominium sales increased 29% over the first quarter 2010, according to the Florida Association of Realtors. While the housing recovery is gaining strength in the state, there is still an overhang from distressed properties, an economist explained.

The LifeComps Commercial Mortgage Index found returns on investment for commercial mortgages held by life insurers were 14.7% for the full year of 2010, although the fourth quarter had the lowest ROI for the year.

Associated Banc, Green Bay, Wisc., ended the first quarter with roughly $500 million of warehouse lending commitments on its books, almost double what it had a year ago.

Reported incidents of subscriber-verified mortgage fraud and misrepresentation by industry professionals have decreased from 2009 to 2010, according to a recent report by the LexisNexis Mortgage Asset Research Institute. Actual incidents, however, as opposed to reported, are believed to be up.