ATR

Fluctuating rules are redirecting some government-related loans to a disparate private market.

The proposals offer lenders both cause for celebration and for concern.

The new reality for investors and originators accounts for forbearances and ability-to-repay.

First Republic is preparing a private-label residential mortgage-backed securities transaction and could be the first bank to launch this type of deal since the coronavirus first roiled U.S. markets in mid-March.

Future loss mitigation may be most effective if housing-finance industry stakeholders communicate clearly with consumers about these five aspects of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act.

Two Harbors, a real estate investment trust, sold the bulk of its nonagency mortgage-backed securities portfolio to head off margin calls and refocus on its more favorable agency-MBS investments.

Debt-to-income doesn't perfectly measure a borrower's likelihood of making timely mortgage payments, but it shouldn't be replaced as the ability-to-repay rule evolves, it should be made more flexible instead.

Now that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau says it will scrap an unpopular standard for so-called qualified mortgages, the big question is what will take its place.

The agency is sending a strong message that it won't rush to end an exemption for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac while also signaling longer-term changes that will affect all lenders.

Changing or eliminating the exemption to the qualified mortgage rule could harm consumers and put smaller lenders at a disadvantage to the big banks.

The percentage of recent mortgage borrowers with subprime credit scores still resides in the single digits, but nearly doubled what is was in 2013, according to TransUnion.

Industry groups are calling on the consumer bureau to eliminate the debt-to-income limit for “qualified mortgages” and provide a short-term extension of special treatment for Fannie- and Freddie-backed loans.

Senate Democrats are warning the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to be careful as it considers changes to its mortgage underwriting rules.

New Home Mortgage Disclosure Act data shows debt-to-income ratios have risen but also have been frequently cited among reasons for denials, suggesting lenders are becoming more cautious about this underwriting metric.

Though advocates and industry are rarely aligned, they are starting to coalesce around a plan that would call for the elimination of the CFPB’s 43% debt-to-income limit as part of its qualified mortgage rule.

Mortgage companies will be charged fees to upgrade an Internal Revenue Service system they use, but will benefit from the improvement as well.

The industry has long worried that the ability-to-repay rule gives borrowers an avenue to fight foreclosure, but one plaintiff’s experience may discourage others from trying.

The monthly volume of new mortgage securities insured by Ginnie Mae remained higher than it has been in more than two years in July, rising slightly on a consecutive-month basis.

With the agency mulling changes to the “Qualified Mortgage” regulation, mortgage lenders say little-known standards for how they document a borrower’s income would be a good place to start.

More applications for non-QM loans might close if lenders and originators beefed up efforts to address missing or outdated information, according to Computershare.