Origination

Investment bank Gleacher & Co. Inc.’s new Descap Mortgage Funding subsidiary has made plans for—among other things—eventual cautious expansion of its loan product offerings beyond current, standard agency/government lending efforts.

It is inevitable that when one starts up a new business, there are going to be mistakes made. And many of those mistakes are done because of a lack of knowledge about what does it take to run a business.

Big banks and Washington aren't on the same page—again.

Redwood Trust, the only firm to dip its toe back into the jumbo MBS market, earned $15 million in the fourth quarter, a 63% decline from the same period a year earlier.

Unless Congress comes up with some fresh cash by midnight Friday, the federal government will shut down — and along with it the Federal Housing Administration and its popular mortgage insurance programs. And an apparent deal to extend government operations would only kick the can down the road for another two weeks.

Government funding for Native American housing continues on its seesaw. While President Obama’s 2012 budget calls for an all-time high of $700 million for the Indian Housing Block Grant, the continuing resolution for fiscal 2011 has been slashed to $500 million.

Come April 1, the Federal Reserve Board is raising the threshold that triggers mandatory escrow accounts for jumbo loans.

Real estate valuation provider PCV Murcor has hit its 30-year anniversary.

Ventas Inc., Chicago is buying a competing health care real estate investment trust, Nationwide Health Properties Inc., in an all-stock deal valued at $7.4 billion.

Fannie Mae purchased $73.8 billion worth of mortgages from its seller/servicers during January, its weakest acquisition month since August of last year when refinancings were booming, according to figures released Monday morning.