Originations

Publicly traded REIT Two Harbors Investment Corp. is laying the groundwork for a $200 million jumbo MBS deal, partnering with Barclays Bank PLC.

Despite improvements in the job market and low mortgage rates, Federal Reserve officials seem disappointed that their efforts to perk up housing are having little impact, according to minutes of the central bank's December monetary policy committee meeting.

The top 10 sellers of mortgages to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac pay 20 basis points in guarantee fees compared to 30 bps for firms outside the top 100, according to a new report from Keefe Bruyette & Woods.

Another big year for multifamily construction could push housing starts up 13% in 2012 after posting a 4% increase last year, according to a new forecast from Wells Fargo Securities.

November was the second best month of last year in terms of new private mortgage insurance written, but new applications received declined from October, according to the Mortgage Insurance Cos. of America.

Commercial mortgages had a mixed year in the securitized secondary markets during 2011 and the outlook for 2012 is that the sector still faces some hurdles but may hold some opportunities.

"Nothing happens until something gets sold." I've repeated this statement in just about every article I've written about business and the selling process. My instructional and training philosophy is simple, easy and effective so it would stand to reason that you don't have to have an IQ off the charts to comprehend my approach to sales training and coaching.

Wholesale lender 360 Mortgage Group has been dropping overlays on the conforming loan products it sources from mortgage brokers and at press time planned to ship the bulk of its production to the agencies rather than correspondent purchasers.

MGIC Investment Corp., at yearend contributed $200 million of cash to its mortgage insurance subsidiary as two important capital waiver deadlines expired.

BOFI Federal Bank, San Diego, is ready to kick off its new warehouse lending business, targeting correspondent lenders.

The Army Times' 2009 Soldier of the Year is now a homeowner, thanks to GMAC Mortgage.

A global settlement has been reached between Knauf Plasterboard Tianjin and thousands of homeowners who filed a lawsuit who claimed that the company’s tainted Chinese drywall product was used to construct their properties and severely damaged their homes.

Commercial real estate is expected to make a subtle rebound this year and some community bankers are gearing up for the return.

Despite a sluggish mortgage origination market, an energetic atmosphere surrounds technology advances in this sector of specialty home finance. “There’s never been a more robust selection of tech for originators,” said Jeff Taylor, president of Wendover Consulting.

A term being passed round lately about many lenders is sustainability. Businesses need to have a strategy in order to survive long-term. Looking back at a list of the top 30 originators from 2001 shows that 19 of those companies are no longer in business, either having shut their doors or merged with other entities.

Patrick Thesing has been named the chief compliance officer for Houston-based Stewart Information Services Corp.

The title insurance unit of First American Financial Corp. has agreed to acquire Hexter-Fair Title Co. in Dallas.

The National Association of Realtors said that it overestimated home sales by nearly 15% in 2010, an indication that the housing market is in even worse shape than many experts previously thought.

With major investors exiting the reverse mortgage space, originations of government-backed Home Equity Conversion Mortgages have dropped by 950 to 1,100 loans a month.

It was surprising to find, looking at the 2010 Home Mortgage Disclosure Act data, that $1 trillion in mortgage applications went unfunded that year. That's nearly 40% of a total of $2.6 trillion in apps.