Originations

CitiMortgage has announced a $15 billion commitment to provide affordable housing to low- and moderate-income, minority, and underserved families in Texas through the end of the decade.CitiMortgage, Citigroup's residential mortgage lending business, said the pledge was made in connection with its Opportunities Within Neighborhoods program, which is part of Citi's broader $200 billion commitment to affordable housing through 2010. The announcement was made at the San Antonio Housing Trust. CitiMortgage can be found online at http://www.citimortgage.com.

The number of America's working families paying more than 50% of their income for housing has grown to 76% in just over half a decade, according to a new study conducted by the Center for Housing Policy and funded by Freddie Mac.The study, titled "The Housing Landscape for America's Working Families 2005," found that in 1997 up to 2.4 million working families spent more than half their income on housing, but that by 2003 this number had almost doubled to 4.2 million. It also found that immigrant working families are 75% more likely to pay more than half their income for housing than their native-born counterparts. (Findings are based on 1997-2003 data about working families, which are defined as low- to moderate-income families that work the equivalent of a full-time job and earn anywhere from the minimum wage of $10,700 to 120% of the median income in their area.) CHP research director Barbara Lipman said the study shows that the housing problems of working families are "more persistent and pervasive than many experts may have thought, and are not only confined to cities, renters, or the East and West coasts."

Madison Equity Corp., a specialty mortgage originator based in Gibbsboro, N.J., has announced that it will launch a wholesale division June 1 that will provide collateral-based residential mortgage loans to borrowers through the mortgage broker community.Madison Equity said it has received a "significant" capital investment from a private investment firm to "ensure that it has ample financial and professional resources to support the growth of the wholesale division." The company said it plans to add more than 20 mortgage professionals to its staff. "We are well capitalized and one of only a handful of loan originators focused exclusively on the collateral-based lending market," said Jason E. Osborne, Madison Equity's chief executive officer and president. "We are committed to providing unmatched levels of service to mortgage brokers." The company can be found online at http://www.madisonequitycorporation.com.

The office of New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer is in the early stages of a probe to determine whether discriminatory practices have been used in setting interest rates and fees charged on mortgage loans, according to a spokeswoman."We've sent out letters to a number of banks," NY AG spokeswoman Juanita Scarlett told MortgageWire. "Based on the [Home Mortgage Disclosure Act] data released in March, we saw some very compelling evidence. .... The banks we are looking at have a higher incidence of subprime lending in New York." Ms. Scarlett said there is "reason to believe" there are disparities in how lending standards are being applied. Some banks have lent money to African-American borrowers at rates four times those given to white borrowers, she said. The investigation was first reported by The Wall Street Journal.

Class M of Heller Financial Commercial Mortgage Asset Corp. mortgage pass-through certificates, series 2000 PH-1, has been downgraded from B3 to Caa1 by Moody's Investors Service.In addition, the rating agency upgraded four classes in the deal and affirmed the ratings on eight other classes. The downgrade was attributed to realized and projected losses from the specially serviced loans and to dispersion of the loan-to-value ratios of the loans. Four loans, representing 3.5% of the pool, are in special servicing, and 45 loans, representing 25.0%, are on the master servicer's watchlist. Moody's said 15.9% of the pool has an LTV greater than 100%, compared with 0.2% at securitization. As of April 15, the transaction's aggregate balance had decreased from $957.0 million at securitization to $839.3 million. The certificates are collateralized by 206 mortgage loans secured by commercial and multifamily properties. Moody's can be found online at http://www.moodys.com.

Washington Mutual, Seattle, has announced the grand opening of three home loan centers and a loan processing center in Houston, the latest phase in its joint commitment with former basketball great Earvin "Magic" Johnson to boost homeownership in underserved communities.The openings also mark the beginning in Houston of Solid Start, a free, four-part financial education and credit building program available in English and Spanish. WaMu said it has now opened 21 home loan centers in seven cities across the country in conjunction with Johnson Development Corp., of which Mr. Johnson is chairman and chief executive officer. Six more are scheduled to be opened this year in Miami, Chicago, Newark, N.J., and Rialto, Calif.

Equity Office Properties Trust, Chicago, has reported net income of $100.9 million ($0.25 per share) for the first quarter, compared with $65.3 million ($0.16 per share) for the first quarter of 2004.Funds from operations for the first quarter totaled $302.1 million ($0.66 per share), the office real estate investment trust said, about the same as the FFO of $302.4 million for the first quarter of 2004. "Office markets across the country are continuing to improve," said Richard D. Kincaid, EOPT's president and chief executive officer. "We expect limited construction of new space through 2006, and see positive trends in occupancy, job growth, and office space absorption. With these positive signs, we anticipate steady improvement and an increase in leasing activity in many of our markets."

The average 30-year fixed mortgage rate fell to 5.78% for the seven-day period ending April 28 from 5.80% the previous week, according to Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey.The average 15-year fixed mortgage rate decreased from 5.36% to 5.33%, the average rate for five-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgages declined from 5.22% to 5.20%, and the average rate for one-year Treasury-indexed ARMs fell from 4.26% to 4.21%. Fees and points averaged 0.6 of a point for fixed-rate mortgages and one-year ARMs and 0.5 of a point for hybrid ARMs. "The market was disappointed on the news of lower consumer confidence and lower orders for durable goods," said Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac's chief economist. "These numbers suggest that the [Federal Reserve Board] will remain restrained in its practice of raising short-term rates, which may be an indication the Fed doesn't see inflation to be as great a threat as the markets previously had thought it would be." A year ago, the average 30-year and 15-year fixed rates were 6.01% and 5.35%, respectively, and the average one-year ARM rate was 3.75%, Freddie Mac said. Freddie Mac can be found online at http://www.freddiemac.com.

Health Care REIT, Toledo, Ohio, has announced a cash tender offer for any and all of its $100 million outstanding principal amount of 7.625% senior notes due March 2008.The total payment for the notes will be based on a 75-basis-point fixed spread over the 3.375% U.S. Treasury note due Feb. 15, 2008, plus accrued and unpaid interest, the real estate investment trust said. The offer is scheduled to expire at 5 p.m. Eastern time on May 4. Deutsche Bank Securities Inc. has been retained as the sole dealer/manager in connection with the tender offer. The REIT can be found online at http://www.hcreit.com.

Equity Residential, Chicago, has reported net income of $214.0 million for the first quarter ($0.74 per share), compared with $98.3 million ($0.35 per share) for the first quarter of 2004.The real estate investment trust said the increase is mostly due to increased gains on property sales of $0.26 per share as well as an $0.18 gain per share from eBay's acquisition of Equity Residential's stake in Rent.com. The multifamily REIT also reported that its funds from operations for the first quarter were $0.74 per share, compared with $0.52 per share for the first quarter of 2004. The REIT can be found online at http://www.equityapartments.com.

The median price of an existing home in California was 15.7% higher in March than the level recorded a year earlier, and resales were up 7.5%, according to the California Association of Realtors.The median price of an existing single-family detached home in California totaled $495,400 in March, compared with $428,060 a year earlier, CAR reported. The seasonally adjusted annualized rate of closed escrow sales of existing single-family detached homes totaled 634,700, up from the 590,220-unit rate recorded in March 2004, CAR said. "The median price of a home was just shy of a half-million dollars in March, although the annual rate of increase was the smallest we've seen since June 2003," said CAR president Jim Hamilton. "The inventory of homes for sale has increased compared to a year ago, which has lessened the upward pressure on home prices, but consumers' perceptions that interest rates will increase continues to drive the market." CAR can be found online at http://www.car.org.

The risk of a general decline in home prices over the next two years is highest in the Northeast and California, according to the latest PMI Risk Index.The average value of the index for the 50 largest metropolitan statistical areas stood at 202 in the latest quarterly index, up from its previous reading of 161, said PMI Mortgage Insurance Co., the Walnut Creek, Calif.-based mortgage insurer that created the index. The index value means that these MSAs have on average a 20.2% probability of experiencing a home price decline in the next two years. But for the MSAs topping the index, the risk is much higher. They are Boston-Quincy (Mass.), at 534; Nassau-Suffolk (N.Y.), at 511; and Oakland-Fremont-Hayward (Calif.), at 487. Fourteen of the 15 riskiest MSAs are in the Northeast or California. "The latest PMI Risk Index numbers reveal that most of the increase in house price risk is concentrated in certain markets, caused by regional weakening in affordability," said Mark Milner, chief risk officer of PMI Mortgage Insurance. PMI can be found online at http://www.pmigroup.com.

The Market Composite Index, an overall measure of mortgage applications, rose from 672.6 to 712.4 on a seasonally adjusted basis during the week ended April 22, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association's Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey.On an unadjusted basis, applications rose 6.3% on the week but were down 4.2% from their level a year earlier. The Purchase Index rose from 466.7 to 482.0 on a seasonally adjusted basis, while the Refinance Index climbed from 1870.0 to 2052.5. Refinancings represented 39.3% of total applications, up from 38.0% the previous week, while adjustable-rate mortgages accounted for 34.7%, the MBA said. The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages fell from 5.83% to 5.75%, and points (including the origination fee) were unchanged, at 1.28, for loans with 80% loan-to-value ratios, the MBA reported. The MBA can be found online at http://www.mortgagebankers.org.

One class from each of two deals originated by New Century Mortgage Corp. have been placed under review for possible downgrade by Moody's Investors Service.The negative watchlist placements were as follows: class B1, Morgan Stanley Dean Witter Capital I Inc., series 2001-NC1; and class B2, CWABS Inc., series 2001-BC1. In addition, Moody's placed 33 certificates from 18 deals originated by New Century under review for possible upgrade. The transactions, issued in 1999-2000, are backed by first-lien adjustable- and fixed-rate subprime mortgage loans. The classes placed on review for possible downgrade were watchlisted because credit enhancement is low given the projected losses on the underlying pools, the rating agency said. The deals have taken losses, and "pipeline loss could cause eventual erosion of the overcollateralization," Moody's said. The rating agency can be found online at http://www.moodys.com.

CBA Commercial LLC, a specialty commercial mortgage finance firm based in Stamford, Conn., has appointed Craig L. Knutson as executive vice president and chief information officer and Kent S. Nevins as EVP and general counsel.Mr. Knutson was previously president and chief operating officer of Ariasys Inc. and spent more than 20 years as a finance professional with such firms as Credit Suisse First Boston and Morgan Stanley & Co., CBA Commercial said. Mr. Nevins was formerly a partner at Pillsbury Winthrop LLP and its predecessor, Winthrop Stimson Putnam & Roberts. CBA Commercial said his career in private legal practice spans more than 20 years, during which he represented banks, mortgage lenders, developers, and others in real estate and capital market transactions. CBA Commercial can be found on the Web at http://www.cbaloans.com.

Countrywide Financial Corp., Calabasas, Calif., has reported consolidated net earnings of $688.9 million ($1.13 per share) for the first quarter, a 27% increase from $543.2 million ($0.90 per share) in the first quarter of 2004.Pretax earnings by the company's mortgage banking operations rose to $772 million from $561 million a year earlier. "Countrywide's heightened profitability was driven primarily by an increased contribution from the mortgage banking segment, where pretax earnings were up 38% from the same quarter a year ago and 196% from last quarter," said Angelo R. Mozilo, Countrywide's chairman and chief executive officer. Pretax earnings totaled $735 million in the mortgage production sector and $17 million in the servicing sector, where further improvement "was limited primarily by lower-of-cost-or-market accounting, as the market value for mortgage servicing rights increased by $168 million more than the increase in carrying value," the company said. Countrywide's servicing portfolio stood at a record $893 billion as of March 31, up $211 billion from that of a year earlier, the company reported. The company can be found online at http://www.countrywide.com.

Fannie Mae has introduced a DUS-plus program that allows the use of mezzanine financing in conjunction with its regular delegated underwriting and servicing program.Under the new program, DUS lenders will have the ability to offer additional mezzanine financing for Fannie Mae fixed-rate DUS loans between $3 million and $25 million. RCG Longview, a New York City-based real estate fund manager, said it will purchase the DUS-plus mezzanine loans "on an exclusive basis" from Fannie Mae. The new program, which will provide "one-stop shopping" for the acquisition or refinancing of multifamily properties, offers a combined loan-to-value ratio of up to 85% and requires a minimum debt service coverage ratio of 1.1 times, according to RCG. A spokeswoman for Freddie Mac told MortgageWire that Freddie Mac is coming out with a similar product very soon.

Sales of new single-family homes rose 12% in March to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.43 million units, according to figures released Tuesday by the Commerce Department.The strong performance confounded housing economists who were anticipating a decline in March (compared with February sales) because of bad weather and rising mortgage rates. Instead, new-home sales surpassed the all-time high of 1.3 million units set back in October. Sales of both new and existing homes have set records in the past four years, but analysts are expecting demand to cool this year, in part because of rising rates. Rates began ticking up earlier this year but began to fall again about three weeks ago. Lenders, including Countrywide Home Loans, the nation's largest mortgage banker, have noticed a pickup in applications over the past few weeks. The Commerce Department can be found online at http://www.doc.gov.

Health Care Property Investors Inc., a real estate investment trust based in Long Beach, Calif., has announced the pricing of $250 million of 5 5/8% senior unsecured notes at 99.585.The effective yield will be 5.673%, the REIT said. The sole book-running manager was UBS Investment Bank, and the co-managers were Banc of America Securities LLC, Barclays Capital, and J.P. Morgan. The company can be found on the Web at http://www.hcpi.com.

Sales of existing single-family homes in Florida totaled 24,045 in March, up 6% from the level recorded a year earlier, according to the Florida Association of Realtors.The median sales price of homes sold in March climbed to $212,300, up 28% from $165,700 in March 2004, FAR said. Among the state's larger markets, resales increased 48% in the Fort Myers-Cape Coral metropolitan statistical areas, 16% in the Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater MSA, and 7% in the Jacksonville MSA, but they fell 28% in Miami, FAR reported.