Banking

Maria Vullo is stepping down as head of New York's banking and insurance regulator after three years in which she created a national model for cybersecurity regulations at banks and fought back against federal attempts to chip away at payday-lending rules.

Adjustable-rate mortgages in November had their highest share of closed loans since Ellie Mae started tracking this data in 2011 as rates for 30-year loans reached 5.15%.

A proposal issued over a year ago by federal banking agencies to simplify risk-based capital rules and ease compliance burdens for community banks has still not been finalized, and mortgage brokers and bankers are calling on them to do just that.

Richard Harra was also fined $300,000 for painting a false picture of the bank’s financial health at the height of the financial crisis.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency has proposed barring Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac from using credit scores developed by VantageScore over concern about conflicts of interest with the joint venture of Equifax, Experian and TransUnion.

An agency report said servicing portfolios have shrunk by nearly half in 10 years as much of the mortgage market has shifted to nonbanks.

The newly sworn-in director’s first public remarks seemed to contrast with the approach of her predecessor, Mick Mulvaney, who at times questioned the role of the agency.

Executives urged the consumer bureau at a public meeting to keep a closer eye on artificial intelligence innovations developed by fintech firms that are subject to less regulation.

Merchants has agreed to buy NattyMac, a company it has been in business with since 2014.

Democrats on the House Financial Services Committee are expected to shine a spotlight on Trump-appointed regulators, but that light might shine brightest on one agency in particular.

Growing home prices and climbing interest rates didn't stop millennials from buying houses in October, Ellie Mae said.

The performance of loans included in commercial mortgage-backed securities improved for the fifth consecutive quarter, with delinquencies down 179 basis points over the time frame, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

Private-label residential mortgage-backed securitization is approaching a post-crisis high, according to Kroll Bond Rating Agency.

Social Finance, the lending and refinancing startup valued at more than $4 billion, is cutting about 7% of its staff, according to a person familiar with the matter.

The Federal Savings Bank is trying to persuade a judge to look beyond its CEO's alleged complicity in a fraud perpetrated by President Trump's former campaign chair.

Kathy Kraninger, who may get a confirmation vote as early as this week, has suggested a similar vision to that of the agency’s current acting chief. But some see signs she could bring a different approach to the job.

October's loan delinquencies, especially those in serious delinquency, got much healthier after improving from the fallout of the last two hurricane seasons, according to Black Knight.

Minorities are still charged more for mortgages when all other applicable credit factors are equal — both in person and online, according to a new study by the University of California, Berkeley.

Average credit scores for mortgage borrowers remain at a 2018 high, a sign that lenders aren't easing standards despite refinance candidates already falling off on higher rates, according to Ellie Mae.

The effort to raise the threshold for transactions excused from appraisal requirements responds to concerns that the current threshold is outpaced by real estate prices.