Secondary markets

The breaks for some lower-income borrowers are welcomed, but the use of debt-to-income as a differentiator could complicate originations at a challenging time, lenders say.

Currently, there's no standard mechanism for lenders to easily access this information.

The government agency is also allowing the use of certain alternative audit procedures to continue.

Updates will become effective on May 1 and a uniform mortgage-backed securities fee reduction will begin on April 1.

Far bigger transactions were rumored to be brewing in line with megabank Wells Fargo's recent announcement it'll be reducing its portfolio.

For those willing to experiment with the strategy, it could be a long-term differentiator.

The latest month's volume was more than $20 billion lower than in March 2020.

The transactions, combined with news Wells Fargo will be shedding some mortgage servicing rights, add to indications that prices for investors may be more favorable this year.

Among its major accomplishments in the past year were an update to its Reference Model, the foundation for most of its standards.

MSR trading is picking up a little from its seasonal lull but values may not get as high as they did last year, some experts say.