Securitization

The fate of U.S. office markets is intertwined with that of the biggest technology companies, Starwood Capital Group Chairman Barry Sternlicht said.

The Structured Finance Industry Group wants Treasury and the IRS to issue a notice that a change from Libor to an alternative index would not be treated as a taxable exchange.

Freddie Mac exchanged existing bonds from its portfolio for mirror certificates for the first time, completing a key test that is central to the creation of a uniform mortgage-backed security.

While reinsurers are becoming more comfortable with the risk it is offloading, the GSE wants to maintain control of the workout process for loans that go bad.

Depending on market conditions and demand from whole loan buyers, it could fund 25% to 35% of fix-and-flip loans through deals like the $219 million one it just completed.

At $230 million, GSMBST 2019-PJ1 is notably smaller than recent transactions from JPMorgan and Redwood Trust; borrowers also have less equity in their homes.

The Federal Reserve decision to shift into Treasuries could pull rates down and increase the prepayment speeds on mortgage-backed securities.

The 30-year mortgage rate dipped lower than it was 12 months ago for the third week running, according to Freddie Mac's latest report.

The Federal Reserve will roll its maturing holdings of mortgage-backed securities into Treasuries starting after September, capping it at $20 billion per month.

Two Harbors Investment Corp., which grew its servicing portfolio by 22% in the fourth quarter, priced a common stock offering to raise funds to buy more rights as well as mortgage-backed securities.

This week's deal will prime the pump for another $2.5 billion in loans Freddie Mac plans to securitize in the next two to three years.

The Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association approved changes to its good delivery guidelines that ease the path to the government-sponsored enterprises issuing uniform mortgage-backed securities starting on June 3.

Agency mortgage-backed security prepayment speeds increased in February with much of the refinance activity coming from newer loans and those with high coupons, a report from Keefe, Bruyette & Woods said.

Mark Calabria, who could be confirmed as early as this month, is expected to focus on changes to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac’s conservatorships to let the mortgage giants keep more of their profits.

Hines Interests used the $755 million loan from Goldman and JPMorgan to take out a $505 million mortgage from two insurance companies, MetLife and New York LIfe.

American Mortgage Consultants has acquired title search outsourcer String Real Estate Information Services as part of ongoing efforts to support all the services secondary-market clients need to conduct trades.

The new regulation, codifying requirements already in practice, is meant to help the mortgage giants prepare for the adoption of a uniform security in June.

Being too dependent on the automated underwriting tools created by the government-sponsored enterprises to originate loans underlying private-label mortgage-backed securitizations could negatively affect their credit quality, a report from Moody's said.

Without the ability to issue unsecured debt nearly as cheaply as U.S. Treasury bonds, Freddie Mac could not afford to repurchase defaulted loans from MBS, Freddie CEO Don Layton said.

The Federal Reserve Bank of New York is streamlining its Ginnie Mae holdings by combining mortgage-backed securities with similar characteristics into larger pass-through instruments.