Originations

As of the latest reading, delinquencies on Fitch-rated commercial mortgage-backed securities loans have fallen 14 basis points from the second-quarter rate, according to Fitch Ratings.The rating agency said its CMBS loan delinquency index now stands at 1.42%. "A decline in delinquencies has been noted in all property types except office and industrial," said Mary O'Rourke, a Fitch senior director. "Overall, even with the addition of $25 million newly defaulted mixed-use office/retail loans, delinquencies were down by more than $164 million." If unseasoned transactions are removed from the calculations, the new index stands at 1.68%, compared with 1.84% at last reporting, Ms. O'Rourke said. Office and industrial loan-backed CMBS saw increased defaults, 2.5% and 6.4% respectively, but both hotel and health care-backed loans showed improvements, Fitch said. The rating agency also saw delinquencies on retail-backed loans decline, but Fitch says the sector "remains vulnerable to further deterioration." The rating agency can be found online at http://www.fitchratings.com.

Local nonprofit housing groups may have a new source of downpayment assistance under a pilot program that is being backed by Fannie Mae.Under the pilot program, second mortgages made by local NeighborWorks organizations and purchased by the Neighborhood Housing Services of America will be sold to Fannie Mae for cash. The ultimate goal is to securitize the second mortgages and sell the mortgage-backed securities into the capital markets so more low-income families can receive downpayment assistance. "If we could provide loans to low-income homeowners through the capital markets, we could solidify the gains we have been making in homeownership financing over the last 30 years," Federal Reserve Governor Edward Gramlich said at an NHSA meeting in Washington. For the past 30 years, NHSA has acted as a secondary-market agency for nonprofit housing groups and community development organizations.

National Association of Mortgage Brokers president Bob Armbruster says he does not believe rumors that the Department of Housing and Urban Development will issue a revised Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act rule in October.Speaking at the Southeast Mortgage Brokers Conference sponsored by the Georgia Association of Mortgage Brokers in Biloxi, Miss., Mr. Armbruster said it is more likely that action will occur after the November elections, especially if there is a change of control in the White House or the Senate. Furthermore, HUD Secretary Alphonso Jackson has promised the NAMB and other housing industry trade groups that he would call them back to the table to discuss any RESPA proposal. Mr. Armbruster said he believes Mr. Jackson will keep his word.

Nine classes of GMAC Commercial Mortgage Securities Inc., series 2000-C3, mortgage pass-through certificates have been placed on review for possible downgrade by Moody's Investors Service.The affected classes are as follows: classes J, K, L, M, N, O, S-MAC1, S-MAC2, and S-MAC3. Moody's said it placed classes J, K, L, M, N and O on review for possible downgrade due to concerns about the pool's performance and potential losses associated with the specially serviced loans. Approximately 36.3% of the pool is on the master servicer's watchlist, and six loans totaling 1.2% of the pool are in special servicing, the rating agency said. Classes S-MAC1, S-MAC2 and S-MAC3 were placed on review due to concerns about the performance of the MacArthur Center Loan, which consists of a $97.3 million senior loan and a $42.3 million junior loan on a regional mall in Norfolk, Va. Moody's can be found online at http://www.moodys.com.

Fitch Ratings says it is monitoring the effects on loan delinquencies of the latest hurricanes to affect Florida, the fourth-largest contributor of collateral to U.S. commercial mortgage-backed securities."With the impact from last month's Charley expected to create a short-term uptick in delinquencies, the successor storms Frances, and possibly Ivan, are likely to extend the duration of the increased delinquencies," said Mary MacNeill, a Fitch senior director. Borrowers against commercial properties are required to carry wind damage insurance, which generally carries a 5% loss deductible, as well as property interruption insurance. While servicers have been contacting property owners and managers, the extent of the damage is still unknown. Fitch said it will closely monitor loans secured by properties in the path of the hurricane, especially those in the following 10 deals, which have a greater than 20% exposure to Florida: CDC 2002-FX1, CSFB 1995-M1, CSFB 2004-TFL1, GMAC 2000-FLF, JP Morgan 2000-FL1, LTC Commercial Mortgage 1996-1, Morgan Stanley 1995-GAL1, Morgan Stanley Dean Witter 2002-XLF, Nationslink Funding 1998-1, and SASCO 1996-CFL1. Fitch can be found online at http://www.fitchratings.com.

TCF Financial Corp., Wayzata, Minn., has reported that it will merge the residential mortgage loan origination activities of its TCF Mortgage Corp. into TCF National Bank."Effective Dec. 1, all residential mortgage loans will be made by the consumer lending division of TCF National Bank, and TCFMC will no longer be selling mortgage loans in the secondary market," the company said. TCF said expenses associated with the merger would be approximately $2.5 million, including approximately $1.2 million in the third quarter. TCF can be found online at http://www.tcfbank.com.

The average 30-year fixed mortgage rate rose to 5.83% for the week ending Sept. 10 from 5.77% the previous week, according to Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey.The average 15-year fixed mortgage rate rose from 5.15% to 5.22%, while the average rate for one-year Treasury-indexed ARMs climbed from 3.97% to 4.00%. Fees and points averaged 0.8 of a point for fixed-rate mortgages and 0.7 of a point for ARMs. "August's 144,000-job gain, combined with a 41,000 upward revision for July, signaled a strengthening economy and helped push mortgage rates up slightly this week," said Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac's chief economist. "However, Fed Chairman Greenspan's testimony to Congress [Sept. 8] outlined a less robust economy than he previously had portrayed, offsetting some of the interest rate increase." A year ago, the average 30-year and 15-year fixed rates were 6.44% and 5.77%, respectively, and the average one-year ARM rate was 3.98%, Freddie Mac said.

Fitch Risk and Property & Portfolio Research have launched a commercial real estate credit model, Compasscre, which combines PPR's commercial real estate analytics and data with Fitch Risk's commercial real estate credit model.The model uses historical loan performance data to measure the probability of default, loss given default, and expected loss for a loan, portfolio, or securitized pool, Fitch said. "Real estate can now be analyzed with the same level of analytic sophistication as other asset classes," said David Kelson, a Fitch Risk managing director.

Buyers Fund, a downpayment assistance provider based in Provo, Utah, has reported the acquisition of Neighborhood Gold, a marketing and training firm for the DPA industry.The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Buyers Fund said the acquisition brings the sales and marketing activities of the company under the same umbrella with its current processing and nonprofit activities. The company said the acquisition entitles it to the Neighborhood Gold brand name, assets, and all marketing and sales professional resources and employees.

The Market Composite Index, an overall measure of mortgage applications, rose from 642.7 to 692.0 on a seasonally adjusted basis during the week ended Sept. 3, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association's Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey.On an unadjusted basis, applications climbed 6.2% on the week and was up 12.2% from the level of a year earlier. The Purchase Index rose from 443.1 to 476.0 on a seasonally adjusted basis, while the Refinance Index climbed from 1804.1 to 1948.9. Refinancings represented 41.4% of total applications, up from 40.7% the previous week, while adjustable-rate mortgages accounted for 32.9%, the MBA said. The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages rose from 5.75% to 5.79%, and points (including the origination fee) increased from 1.32 to 1.37, for loans with 80% loan-to-value ratios, the MBA reported. The MBA can be found online at http://www.mortgagebankers.org.

MassHousing, the affordable-housing bank of the state of Massachusetts, has announced that it provided a record $704 million in financing for more than 7,000 housing units in fiscal year 2004.The total exceeded MassHousing's previous record -- $562 million in fiscal 2002 -- by $142 million, or 25%. The quasi-public agency's core business is to make below-market-rate loans to low- and moderate-income homebuyers, finance new mixed-income housing, and preserve existing affordable rental housing. It can be found on the Web at http://www.masshousing.com.

Minneapolis-based U.S. Bank Home Mortgage, Freddie Mac, and the Community College Foundation have launched The Five Star Service Express, a bus converted into an Internet-ready financial service center that will travel around the Twin Cities in September and October.U.S. Bank said a team of bankers, mortgage professionals, and small business specialists will team up with representatives from neighborhood nonprofit organizations on the bus to promote financial education and homeownership. "We hope to hear from individuals who want to own their first home, start or expand their family business, or maybe even get their credit history back on track," said Ed Shanks, executive vice president of U.S. Bank Home Mortgage and coordinator of the project. "We will advise them, help them plan, and can even take an online application or open a checking or savings account if they're ready to take that step." The project's sponsors can be found online at http://www.usbank.com, http://www.freddiemac.com, and http://www.communitycollege.org.

Southern Community Financial Corp., Winston-Salem, N.C., has announced the acquisition by its subsidiary Southern Community Bank and Trust of two residential mortgage offices from Davidson Mortgage, Cornelius, N.C.The president of Davidson Mortgage, James Davidson, and the employees of the two offices, located in Cornelius and in Lexington, S.C., have joined Southern Community Bank. Under the terms of the deal, Southern Community acquired Davidson's lease obligations and certain fixed assets in the acquired offices, but Davidson's offices in Mount Pleasant and Myrtle Beach, S.C., were not acquired, Southern Community said. The financial details were not disclosed. "We believe our construction lending expertise will complement the relationships Davidson Mortgage has established with the builder community in the thriving Lake Norman area," said Jeff Clark, president of Southern Community Bank and Trust. The bank can be found online at http://www.smallenoughtocare.com.

Home prices rose 10.0% nationwide over the 12 months ended June 30, up from 6.5% in the comparable period a year earlier, according to Freddie Mac.In the second quarter alone, prices rose at an annualized rate of 9.8%, Freddie Mac reported in releasing its quarterly Conventional Mortgage Home Price Index. The index showed that, for the fourth quarter in a row, the Pacific states recorded the largest gains in home prices, which rose 17.1% for the 12-month period. The Middle Atlantic states of New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania followed with a 12.7% growth rate, and the New England states finished third with a 11.7% rate. "After three years of declining mortgage rates and big jobs gains earlier in the year, housing demand is as strong as we've ever seen it," said Amy Crews Cutts, Freddie Mac's deputy chief economist. "The housing market should remain strong for the next several quarters, but may begin to slow from record levels as interest rates start to gradually rise." The index was jointly developed by Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae. Freddie Mac can be found online at http://www.freddiemac.com.

Mortgage lenders dropped 3,000 full-time employees from their payrolls in July, according to the August employment report released Friday by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.Despite the drop, employment in the mortgage sector is still near last year's peak, and the Mortgage Bankers Association's chief economist says he expects the job numbers for August to show little change. (There is a one-month lag in BLS reporting of mortgage-sector employment data, and the August data will not be released until Oct. 8.) The latest BLS report shows that jobs in the mortgage banking/broker sector fell from 457,300 in June to 454,300 in July. "We expect August to be about the same as July," MBA chief economist Doug Duncan said. "We have seen a tick down in interest rates in August. So companies are still getting some benefit at the margin by maintaining employment." Meanwhile, the U.S. economy created 144,000 new jobs in August, and the unemployment rate declined slightly from 5.5% in July to 5.4% in August. The BLS can be found online at http://stats.bls.gov.

CB Richard Ellis, Los Angeles, has been named real estate adviser to RBC Financial Group, the businesses and operating subsidiaries of Royal Bank of Canada.CBRE said the outsourcing of services includes portfolio, transaction, facilities, and project management. "The assignment is noteworthy because it represents a substantial expansion of the services CBRE has delivered to RBC Centura during the last 11 years," CBRE said. The company will oversee real estate services for RBC Centura, RBC Builder Finance, RBC Mortgage, RBC Global Private Banking, and the U.S. operations of RBC Capital Markets and RBC Insurance. CBRE can be found online at http://www.cbre.com.

Bonuses paid to the chief executives of community banks and thrifts fell by 20% in 2003 despite record mortgage originations, according to a compensation survey by America's Community Bankers.The average profit sharing/bonus payment to CEOs in 2003 was $55,472 compared to $71,900 in 2002. Single-family loan originations hit a record $3.9 trillion in 2003. However, the decline in 2003 bonuses reflects concerns about a decline in loan volumes for the year ahead, according ACB senior vice president Debra Cope. She noted 2002 appears to be "blip" and bonus are returning to more normal levels. Commissions and bonuses paid to managers who oversee single-family mortgage originations also fell. Commissions fell from $71,000 in 2002 to $60,000 in 2003 while the average profit sharing/bonus payments fell from $17,400 in 2002 to $13,900 to 2003. The ACB survey collected responses from 361 banks and most of the institutions have less than $1 billion in assets.

Milwaukee-based Guaranty Bank, in conjunction with Fannie Mae, has introduced the "Buy for Family" mortgage, which allows a qualified borrower to finance the purchase of a residence for parents or a sibling if they are unable to buy a home for themselves.Guaranty Bank will originate the loans, and Fannie Mae will purchase eligible loans. They describe Buy for Family as "a flexible, affordable mortgage that helps qualified buyers, such as the first-generation children of immigrants, purchase a home for their parents or siblings, who may not have traditional forms of credit or use mainstream banking and are, therefore, unable to qualify to buy the home themselves." Borrowers contribute at least $500 down from their own funds, with the remainder coming from a gift from their family member or grants from a church, employer, municipality, or nonprofit agency. To be eligible for the new product, a home must be located in Chicago, Atlanta, Detroit, or the state of Wisconsin. The companies can be found online at http://www.fanniemae.com and http://www.shelter-mortgage.com.

Success Financial Services Group Inc., Tampa, Fla., has announced the acquisition of Seminole Funding Inc., a privately owned mortgage company based in Seminole, Fla.The terms of the deal were not disclosed. Seminole is a Florida-licensed correspondent lender. Success Financial is a holding company whose subsidiaries include SIG Mortgage Co. of Florida, which finances real estate transactions and buys and sells mortgages in the secondary market. Seminole can be found on the Web at http://seminolefunding.com.

The average 30-year fixed mortgage rate fell to 5.77% for the week ending Sept. 3 from 5.82% the previous week, according to Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey.The average 15-year fixed mortgage rate fell from 5.21% to 5.15%, while the average rate for one-year Treasury-indexed ARMs declined from 4.05% to 3.97%. Fees and points averaged 0.8 of a point for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages and ARMs and 0.7 of a point for 15-year FRMs. "The drop in consumer confidence left an unsavory taste in the market, creating a fear that consumer spending will slow," said Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac's chief economist. "Because consumer spending constitutes about two-thirds of the economy, this could seriously impact economic growth. As a result, interest rates tend to retreat to lower levels." A year ago, the average 30-year and 15-year fixed rates were 6.32% and 5.66%, respectively, and the average one-year ARM rate was 3.88%, Freddie Mac said.