Secondary

Treasury yields rose a second day amid increasing conviction that the Federal Reserve will raise rates at least three times beginning in May.

The company plans to hire an unspecified number of people in servicing as a result of the shift, with a particular focus on recruiting people for “customer-facing” positions.

The metric’s imminent end after more than 40 years means servicers need to put replacement plans in motion if they haven’t already.

The new leader, who officially joined the government mortgage-bond insurer on Jan. 3, is the first Senate-confirmed holder of the post in close to five years.

Mortgage performance in November was improving, coming close to crossing a key threshold for pandemic-era recovery, but Omicron raises questions about whether that trend will continue.

Even among the non-QM loans in the reference pool, pegged to the SOFR, most of their characteristics fall in line with what is considered prime.

Analysts expect loan growth and higher interest rates to drive up equity prices next year, even in the face of the omicron variant and other risks.

Debt issued by states to finance low-interest loans for first-time home-buyers or build affordable housing carry higher yields and are less volatile, so they typically perform better than other muni sectors when rates rise, said Peter DeGroot, head of municipal research and strategy at the biggest U.S. bank.

Average per-loan charges last year were little changed despite the addition of a new temporary fee for refinancing. Those for loan-to-value ratios above 80%, home-purchase financing and adjustable-rate mortgages only rose slightly.

ABS experts discussed new avenues for growth, and hindrances to innovation at the IMN ABS East conference in Miami.