Secondary

Ally Financial is continuing talks with Nationstar about the REIT buying Residential Capital Corp./GMAC through a 'prepackaged' bankruptcy transaction, according to investment bankers familiar with the companies.

The White House budget office estimates that losses caused by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac's reckless management and lending policies will shrink over the next 10 years and cost the U.S. Treasury just $28 billion.

More than five months after the Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP) 2.0 was announced and there is not much seen in terms of the program's impact on prepayment data, according to FTN Financial in a report released this week.

The Federal Reserve Bank of New York Wednesday said it has started a competitive bid process for commercial real estate collateralized debt obligation holdings in the Maiden Lane III LLC portfolio.

New issue, private-label MBS backed by either recent vintage or seasoned loans funded since the downturn have generally had some type of mechanism to enforce and/or clarify parameters for repurchases, a Moody's Investors Service analyst told National Mortgage News.

New mortgage applications rose almost 7% for the week ending April 7 thanks to falling interest rates, which spiked a surge in refinancings, including HARP activity.

U.S. Bancorp saw its mortgage banking revenue more than double in the first quarter, originating roughly $19 billion of residential loans, according to figures released Tuesday.

Mortgage standards are already too tight and the Consumer Financial Protection Agency should not make them even tighter in drafting a final 'qualified mortgage' rule, according to a new letter signed by 33 lender, housing and consumer groups.

Private-label residential MBS interest shortfalls and liquidity disruptions that Standard & Poor's has been observing are likely to continue for some time, a credit analyst said in an online broadcast.

Rumors are starting to surface that if and when a 'HARP 3.0' program is unveiled it will include non-GSE loans. As one commenter told us, "There are a lot of Alt-A loans that look just like GSE loans, but went to private investors. Why should they be punished because their loan was sold to the wrong investor?"