Secondary

Early payment mortgage defaults went to the highest level in nearly a decade, particularly among loans included in Ginnie Mae securities, a Black Knight report said.

Freddie Mac is now forecasting back-to-back years of $2 trillion in mortgage loan originations rather than a drop-off in 2020.

The Dallas company said it should be able to avoid restating past financial results. It also reported higher quarterly earnings helped by increased mortgage activity.

More private mortgage insurers reported significant year-over-year gains in new business during the third quarter, mainly driven by the increase in refinance volume.

A risk management model revision that decreased single-family loan-loss allowances and a strong mortgage lending environment contributed to consistent earnings results at Fannie Mae in the third quarter.

Recent Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac activities are “not the kind of day-to-day behavior that you would expect from companies” under federal control, the head of the Federal Housing Finance Agency said.

Record originations helped Mr. Cooper Group generate its first full-quarter profit since its formation through a merger between WMIH and Nationstar last year.

Shares in the lender fell after it reported lower third-quarter profits, said nonperforming assets rose and cautioned that it had lost multifamily loan deals to competitors offering easier terms.

Freddie Mac will make haste to leave conservatorship in line with new regulatory directives, but it's uncertain how quickly it can move, CEO David Brickman said in an earnings call.

A lower court “erred” when it sided with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac’s investors, the Justice Department said in its petition to the high court.