Secondary

The Russian ruble is in freefall — it's down more than 50% since January — and interest rates are climbing on the back of the Bank of Russia's aggressive efforts to shore up the embattled currency.

The housing market will resume its recovery in 2015 after a "disappointing" year as sales accelerate, construction increases and mortgage credit eases.

More than two dozen Senate lawmakers signed a letter this week that urges the Federal Housing Finance Agency to drop its proposal to tighten Federal Home Loan Bank membership rules.

WASHINGTON — More than two dozen Senate lawmakers signed a letter this week that urges the Federal Housing Finance Agency to drop its proposal to tighten Federal Home Loan Bank membership rules.

The deal resolved claims relating to the underwriting and servicing of loans in more than 300 residential mortgage-backed securitization trusts.

A new report suggests that the credit quality of residential mortgage-backed securities will continue to improve in 2015.

In a speech last May, Edward DeMarco declared these truths to be self-evident: "Restoring Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac is not the solution. They failed and their business model failed. Going backwards to an obviously failed model cannot be dressed up with some promise of higher capital or explicit rather than implicit guarantees."

The amount of commercial and multifamily mortgage debt outstanding rose to a record high in the third quarter, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

Nicholas Schorsch, American Realty Capital Properties Inc.'s former executive chairman, is walking away from a compensation package valued at about $100 million, company filings show.

If the Securities and Exchange Commission bans Standard & Poor's from rating commercial mortgage-backed securities, as it is reportedly planning to, bonds backed by a single, large asset would be hit disproportionately, according to JPMorgan.