Presidency of Barack Obama - New York Times - President - United States - Barack Obama

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Curtis Mortgage reportedly merged with Northstar Bank and will operate as Northstar Bank Mortgage.

The two acquisitions follow Rockville Bank’s recent acquisition of Family Choice Mortgage Corp. and North State Bank’s recent acquisition of the mortgage operations of Affiliated Mortgage LLC.

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The groups claim HUD is going too far by applying the Secure and Fair Enforcement for Mortgage Licensing Act to servicing employees who handle loan modifications.

Imposing SAFE requirements on servicing employees could impede their ability to complete loan modifications and increase servicing costs, according to the letter.

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Growth was strongest in New England, where volume increased 144 percent.

The company noted that a large share of the region’s activity was in Massachusetts.

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HFF’s chief executive officer noted in the report that the company has observed improvements in some sectors of the commercial real estate capital markets during the past quarter.

But HFF still sees a significant number of obstacles ahead — especially with commercial mortgage-backed securities.

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The credit union also announced that it now provides 100 percent financing.

The higher loan-to-value is available on loans up to $650,000.

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1. How Do Treasury Auctions Work? …
2. Quicken Loans Capital Markets Update – High Durable Goods Orders Show Factories Included in Economic Recovery …
3. Quicken Loans Capital Markets Update – New Homes Sales Report Exceeds Expectations …

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1. Home for the holidays, updates that increase value …
2. Decorating Ideas for the Budget Conscious …
3. The Psychology Behind Selling Your Home …

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Equity futures are moderately higher ahead of a fairly light week of economic data. Dow futures are trading 18 points higher at 10,563 and S&P 500 futures are up a 2 points to 1,138. Commodities are also edging slightly higher with WTI crude oil up 33 cents to $81.83 per barrel and Spot Gold up 54 cents to $1,135.19. Meantime, the US dollar is a bit lower against the euro since France’s Nicolas Sarkozy said the continent would help Greece: “if it were necessary, the states of the euro zone would fulfill their commitments.” In terms of data the week ahead doesn’t quite begin until Wednesday afternoon when the Treasury releases its budget statement. On Thursday, weekly jobless claims will be accompanied by the monthly trade balance. Friday’s retail sales index…(read more)

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Good Morning. Happy Monday. I don't know what the weather was like this weekend where you live, but here in the DC/Baltimore metro area we finally had a change of pace from snow and ice: SUN ! Every field was occupied with some sort of sporting event or recreational activity…mostly lacrosse where I live near Annapolis. After a good run and few hours of lax, I feel recharged and ready to go for a productive week ahead—I hope you do too. Here is a quote to get you motivated if you're dragging a bit: "Even if you're on the right track, you'll get run over if you just sit there" -Oklahoma's favorite son, Will Rodgers Ok. Wake up now. Time to get your purchase market campaign perfected. The Week That Was…. The bond market spent the week chopping around a confined…(read more)

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When I was a kid, I used to pray every night for a new bike. Then I realized that God doesn't work that way. So instead I stole a bike and asked Him to forgive me. Neither strategy worked for four more banks, as the FDIC shut them down Friday (without finding buyers for two of them leading to losses for depositors who had balances exceeding the agency's insurance limits). Sun American's (FL) deposits and assets were acquired by First-Citizens Bank (NC) at a cost to the FDIC of $103 million. The Bank of Illinois was "absorbed" by Heartland Bank (IL) at a cost to the FDIC of about $54 million. Waterfield Bank (MD), at a cost to the FDIC $51 million, and Utah's Centennial Bank are now being run by the FDIC, with the help of Zion's Bank, at a cost of about $96 million…(read more)

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I described last week as a roller coaster ride for mortgage rates. A busy schedule of economic data provided much of the motivation for movement in the rates marketplace with the release of the Employment Situation Report on Friday capping off the volatile action. The jobs report indicated fewer jobs were lost than economists had forecast. This better than expected read on the health of the labor market pushed benchmark Treasury yields higher and mortgage-backed security prices lower. While most lenders repriced for the worse after the data was released, several ended up repricing for the better before the week came to a close as of MBS prices rebounded late in the day. This brought mortgage rates right back to the lows of 2010, basically unchanged on the week. To remind readers, as the price…(read more)

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Since the inception of the Home Valuation Code of Conduct (HVCC) in May 2009, there has been much discussion, and misinformation, about the benefits and harm caused by the controversial agreement with the New York Attorney Generals office and the Federal Housing Finance Agency. This agreement, originally made with the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight, requires Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to only accept appraisals ordered from parties independent to the loan production process. Essentially, this means, anyone that may get paid by a successful closing of the loan cannot order the appraisal. In the past 6 months while the Realtors© and Mortgage Brokers associations point fingers at appraisal management companies for their use of incompetent appraisers who don’t understand…(read more)

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Did anyone happen to catch Saturday Night Live this weekend? Alan, the lovable moron from "The Hangover" was the host. I suppose I should share his real name too: Zach Galifianakis. I usually watch SNL on Hulu whenever I have time…but this weekend I happened to be in front of the boob tube to catch it live. I have to say, that entire cast is fully devoted to their careers in comedy. If you missed it or just need a good laugh again…take a few minutes of your day and watch some of the clips , especially the " Kissing Family " skit. My ribs still hurt from laughing. Seriously. Trading in the rates market today has been slower than Allen Iverson's exit from the NBA ..but not as painful to watch. 361,592 10 yr contracts have swapped hands in the rates futures market,…(read more)

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Our FOCIS –plus study has a section on Home Value Code of Conduct (HVCC) compliance. Warehouse lenders in particular are interested in whether a mortgage company has a written HVCC policy and what process lenders use to comply. Some lenders have an internal appraisal management process to comply. The process involves approving appraisers for their panel and having someone, not involved in the origination process, select appraisers randomly. Others use an external appraisal management company (AMC) that has a stable of appraisers that are selected randomly. What is the impact of HVCC? HVCC has been a challenge for originators who don’t have the flexibility they had in the past. Some mortgage bankers complain there are quality issues with appraisals and order a review appraisal before…(read more)

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ridiculously flat trading in MBS and Tsy's low volume, sparse data calendar, looking toward auctions Did we mention flat trading? You'll rarely see MBS and Treasuries trade this flat for this much of the day. From 10:45 on, MBS haven't moved more than 1 tick and tsy's not more than 1bp. Volume is light on both fronts with MBS just over half recent norms. Perhaps even more telling, a quick scan down Fannie, Freddie, and Ginnie MBS from 4.0 to 6.0 shows every security in that range UNCHANGED on the day, except Ginnie 4's, currently up ONE tick. Yawn….. Stocks are pretty much unchanged across big 3 indexes as well. No further data today (not like there was any this AM), and biggest event tomorrow, apart from 3yr auction, looks to be fed-speak! Other than 10yr Auction, Wednesday…(read more)

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Mortgage rates reversed course yet again during the week ended March 4 with the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) once more falling below 5 percent. According to Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey, the 30-year FRM averaged 4.97 percent with an average of 0.7 point compared to an average rate of 5.05 percent with 0.7 point the previous week. The 15-year FRM averaged 4.33 percent, down from 4.40 percent the week before. Fees and points remain unchanged at 0.7 point. The 5-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) had an average rate of 4.11 percent, down from 4.16 percent during the week ended February 25. Fees and points also declined from 0.6 point to 0.5 point. The one-year Treasury-indexed ARM was the lone exception to the downward trend. The average rate for…(read more)

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The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA), American Bankers Association (ABA), and the American Financial Services Association (AFSA) joined with 11 state and local mortgage lending groups on Friday to send a letter to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development expressing concerns about the way in which HUD is proposing to implement the 2008 SAFE Act. The SAFE Act (Secure and Fair Enforcement for Mortgage Licensing), was passed in July 2008 as part of the Housing and Economic Recovery Act. It directs states to adopt licensing and registration requirements for loan originators that meet minimum standards established by the act in lieu of HUD establishing nationwide standards. It also encourages the Conference of State Bank Supervisors (CSBS) and the American Association of Residential…(read more)

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No material change since 10:30AM MBS 4.5's unchanged on the day at 101-07 10yr note 4bps higher on the day to 3.72 Stocks were up, down, up, closed flat No data tomorrow either, then 3yr note auction at 1pm Fed Evans at 930am Big Picture: something's gotta change, or long, slow, grind continues. I wanted to show you the same chart from the Afternoon notes, now updated for the past few hours for the sake of comparison, but I had to send it off to whatever company that is that prints those little activities on my kid's dinner menu where he's supposed to find the differences between two pictures. They heard about those two MBS charts and were thrilled at the possibility of just putting out one puzzle this year that would keep everyone guessing as to whether or not there was even…(read more)

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Case activity increased from 76 cases documented in the third quarter.

It was the highest quarter on record since tracking began in 2007.

Loan modification cases were the driving force behind the increase, more than doubling from the third quarter.

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Each institution was handed over to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation as receiver.

No buyer could be found for Waterfield Bank, which was closed by the Office of Thrift Supervision.

In addition, no buyer was found for Centennial Bank, which was closed by the Utah Department of Financial Institutions.

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Both firms are subsidiaries of American International Group Inc.

"Today’s settlement is significant because it marks the first time the Justice Department has held a lender responsible for failing to monitor its brokers to ensure that borrowers are not charged higher fees because of their race," the assistant attorney general in charge of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division said in the statement.

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Compared to the fourth-quarter 2008, originations were down one-third.

Full-year residential fundings fell 22 percent from 2008.

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Compared to a year earlier, mortgage employment was 5 percent lower.

The number of "mortgage and nonmortgage loan brokers" fell 4 percent from December.

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The data were collected for first-mortgage activity at FDIC-insured banks and thrifts with at least $1 billion in assets or $10 million in quarterly originations.

Wells Fargo also grabbed the top wholesaler spot.

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"Rate sheet influential" MBS coupons ended the day near the price highs of the week. While we did see spotty reprices for the better this afternoon, the majority of lenders left rebate unchanged on the day. The FN 4.0 went out +0-09 at 98-20 yielding 4.134% while the FN 4.5 ended the session +0-07 at 101-13 yielding 4.344%. The secondary market current coupon fell 3.6 basis points to 4.26%. "Rate sheet influential" MBS coupons benefited from a down in coupon bias today. The FN 4.5 outperformed benchmark Treasury hedges by a few basis points. The current coupon yield is 65.4 basis points over the 10 year TSY note yield and 62.4bps over the 10yr swap. The FN 4.5 broke range resistance and is currently bid just below its intraday high of 101-15+. Heck, the FN 4.5 is only 3…(read more)

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Ahead of 830am Nonfarm Payrolls and Unemployment data…. Stock futures are higher…. The 3.625% coupon bearing 10 year TSY note is -0-02 at 100-03 yielding 3.614%. The FN 4.0 is -0-02 at 98-18 and the FN 4.5 is +0-00 at 101-13…. Nonfarm payrolls are expected to print at -50,000. The consensus unemployment rate is 9.8%. Winter weather is expected to cause a temporary contraction in payrolls. READ MORE Tic toc tic toc…….(read more)

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Equity futures are firmly higher this morning ahead of February employment numbers. Payrolls are expected to continue declining but investors are reacting positively to news that the Bank of Japan could initiate measures to protect the economy from deflation. Overseas markets have been positive across the board, including a 2.20% gain in Japan, a 1.03% gain in Hong Kong, and gains of around 1% in Europe. “The Nikkei posted its strongest week of the year as the yen weakened amid speculation that the BoJ will undertake further easing,” noted analysts from BMO. “Meantime, a successful 10-year bond sale by Greece (which raised €5 bln), and stronger-than-expected factory data, are giving Europe a lift, though the euro is little changed.” Two hours before the opening…(read more)

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36,000 jobs were lost in February according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The unemployment rate held steady at 9.7%. The payrolls number was MUCH BETTER than expected. The unemployment rate beat forecasts by 0.1%. FEB NONFARM PAYROLLS -36,000 (CONSENSUS -50,000) VS JAN -26,000 (PREV -20,000) FEB JOBLESS RATE 9.7 PCT (CONS 9.8 PCT) VS JAN 9.7 PCT (PREV 9.7) FEB AVERAGE HOURLY EARNINGS ALL PRIVATE WORKERS +0.1 PCT (CONS +0.2) VS JAN +0.2 PCT, TO $22.46 VS JAN $22.43 FEB YEAR-ON-YEAR AVERAGE HOURLY EARNINGS ALL PRIVATE WORKERS +1.9 PCT FEB AVERAGE WORKWK ALL PRIVATE WORKERS 33.8 HRS (CONS 33.7) VS JAN 33.9, FACTORY 39.5 VS 39.9, OVERTIME 2.6 VS 2.8 FEB FACTORY JOBS +1,000 (CONS -15,000) VS JAN +20,000 (PREV +11,000) FEB GOODS-PRODUCING JOBS -60,000, CONSTRUCTION -64,000 FEB PRIVATE SERVICE…(read more)

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Via email, I recieved the following guidance from the FHA this morning: Subject: Guidance for Currently FHA-Approved Loan Correspondents Regarding Renewal of FHA Lender Approval for 2010 As proposed in a November 30, 2009 via 74 FR 62521 , HUD is seeking to eliminate FHA approval for loan correspondents. Because this rulemaking is still in process and a final rule has not yet been issued, FHA is extending the deadline for the submission of audited financial statements for loan correspondents seeking renewal of their FHA lender approval for 2010. For loan correspondents with a fiscal year end of December 31, and that would ordinarily be required to renew their FHA approval by March 31, 2010, HUD is providing these lenders with an additional 30 days in which to submit their audited financial…(read more)

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A loan agent was seen leaving a title company. "TGIF!" she exclaimed. "Thank God it's Friday?" "No, Thank God it's Funding!" In the mid-60's Woody Allen had a nightclub routine. The contraceptive pill had just come out and he said, "I recently had my first experience with oral contraception. I was at a party the other evening and saw this absolutely fantastic woman! I went over to her and asked if she would go to bed with me. And she said 'No'". Some things are simple, others not. On January 15, 2010, HUD issued a Waiver of Requirements of 24 CFR 203.37a(b)(2) revising exceptions to the FHA Flipping Rule policies . (Notice that HUD did not actually issue a Mortgagee Letter.) The FHA Flipping Rule prohibits FHA financing if the contract…(read more)

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The FN 4.0 is -0-19 at 98-00 yielding 4.192% and the FN 4.5 is -0-17 at 100-28 yielding 4.405%. The secondary market current coupon is 4.33%. The current coupon yield is 63.5 basis points above the 10yr note yield and 59.4bps over the 10 yr swap. While many lenders hit rate sheet rebate by about 30bps at the open, not all desks cushioned pricing. Since the initial knee jerk reaction move lower, MBS prices have fallen further and a REPRICE FOR THE WORSE is possible. I already saw one of the GSEs reprice by another 25bps after the data was released. Looking ahead, I am hopeful the FN 4.5 will find support at the100-28 pivot (that was my pre-payrolls target). 3.68% is our next level of support in 10s….(read more)

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We are often asked whether or not a mortgage banker should be actively managing interest rate risk via mandatory commitment loan sales. We recently provided information from a prominent hedging consultant firm regarding the pricing spread between best efforts pricing and mandatory pricing. As was noted, the wide spread between mandatory one-off's and best effort pricing that was observed in early 2009 has since narrowed considerably. HERE is the data. HERE is more perspective on WHY. Many owner/operators see the large spread in commitment prices as an easy method to add 30-50 basis points in gain on sale to the bottom line. We agree, mandatory commitments offer the opportunity to increase profits and even lower rates, but we must point out the risks associated with mandatory committing…(read more)

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"Rate sheet influential" MBS prices have recovered from intraday lows, but not before several prominent lenders repriced for the worse. Since then current coupon MBS prices have bounced back to the initial post-NFP low price print. The FN 4.0 is currently -0-14 at 98-06 yielding 4.175% and the FN 4.5 is -0-08 at 101-04 yielding 4.376%. The secondary market current coupon is 4.306%. The current coupon yield is 61.7 basis points over the 10 year Treasury note yield and 57.7 bps over the 10yr swap rate. MBS yield spreads are 5 bps tighter vs. benchmarks today. In the chart above I called attention to the price levels at which most lenders published rate sheets this AM. I also pointed out where several prominent lenders repriced for the worse. Given the 6 tick turn around from 100-28…(read more)

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"Little Engine That Could" status certainly has to go to MBS this week. Like the rest of the fixed income market, after a largely positive 2 weeks, MBS came under heavy fire today with the better than expected NFP print. When that happens, bonds of all shapes and sizes head south in a hurry, but to a much greater extent than treasuries, MBS fought back hard. What does that mean? Take a look at how MBS are definitely rallying from 1030am onward and even return to yesterday's range, whereas treasuries just seem to fizzle sideways, never coming close to even the highest yields from 3/4…. As you can see, MBS appeared to almost be playing the same sort of ball they were for the past two days, but treasuries will certainly be opening their locker to find a one way ticket back to the…(read more)

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The report was based on nearly 60,000 commercial mortgages traded on DebtX’s platform as of Jan. 31.

Still, secondary prices on commercial mortgages were down from January 2009.

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The 30-year jumbo rate fell to 5.750 percent from 6.000 percent in the Mortech-MortgageDaily.com Mortgage Market Index for the week ended March 3.

Mortgage activity rose 3% from last week based on the Mortgage Market Index, which was 35 inquiries-per user, higher than 34 the prior week.

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The ratings agency said it has discovered that cash-management arrangements being used by GMAC could give rise to competing claims in a bankruptcy proceeding.

But GMAC told MortgageDaily.com that its "netting process is, and always has been, in compliance with all investor guidelines."

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PriceMyLoan and Mortgage Capital Trading completed an "automated loan pipeline hedging and analysis" interface that offers real-time hedge process to minimize risk in pricing, a statement said.

Del Mar DataTrac Inc. late last year released an upgraded Loan-Score product integration with DataTrac version 9.1.

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Makowiecki had been with the company and its predacessor for around nine years.

MetLife also confirmed the departure of its president, national marketing production.

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The futures market is pretty quiet this morning as investors await the jobless claims report today and the month’s unemployment report tomorrow. Also on deck today are revisions to the fourth quarter’s productivity and costs report, and the first look of the year at pending home sales. In Europe, Greece hit the market a well-bid sale of 10-year bonds. “The bonds are being offered with a premium yield of a little under 6.5%, while the 10-yr is trading closer to 6% currently,” analysts from BMO said. “The ability to sell debt and accept that a premium must be paid are steps forward for Greece. A large amount of debt will still need to be issued over the next three months, but progress is a positive for Europe and global markets.” Ninety minutes before the opening…(read more)

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MBS currently unchanged at 101-07 10yr Note almost unchanged (tick or two worse) for a yield of 3.63 Jobless Claims 469k vs 475k expectation Productivity 6.9% vs 6.3% expectation, Costs -5.9% vs. -4.5% expectation, begs the question: why create jobs? Another question: why can't we come to terms with deflationary risks? play the range until the range plays you. Good morning… Most interesting part of my morning so far is probably today's WSJ Ahead Of The Tape section… When I signed up it was some ridiculously small extra expense to get the paper version as well and it has since become an enjoyable part of an otherwise challenging (I'm on the west coast) morning routine. It's strange that only 20-30 years after the broad scale diffusion of internet access that there is something…(read more)

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Bernie Madoff's daughter-in-law, Stephanie Madoff, is changing her name. She says the Madoff name is tainted with scandal and she wants a name with less negative connotation. She will now be known as Stephanie bin Laden. But an underwriter is an underwriter, regardless of name. Lately I have been hearing from producers, some of whom are upset about the current lending environment, some not. But for a slightly different view of things, here is what one very experienced and knowledgeable underwriter wrote to me : "It used to be that we could 'underwrite' a loan and use common sense to navigate individual circumstances and actually make a decision that a loan was a good credit risk. Then DU and LP came along and gave us the laundry list that had to be followed. We were still able…(read more)

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Round 2 Of Morning Data Sends Bonds Higher No reason to expect 10's to break 3.6. MBS: who knows? 4.5's currently at 101-13 and 10s at 3.605 Don't let charts fool you, range is narrow, and very much still a range Stocks Opened up slightly, and have since fallen back to unchanged Play the range until the range plays you Factory Orders nearly hit expectations at 10am, coming in at 1.7% vs. a 2.0% consensus. Not the kind of wild variance that's worthy of a range breakout. At the same time, the Pending Home Sales Index dropped from 96.6 to 90.4, down 7.6%. Even if we weren't already largely expecting ongoing weakness in housing data, this report also does not have the punch to suggest a break from recently established norms in the bond market. So as the market appears to be…(read more)

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Overwhelmed managing your 40-50 employees? Here's a look at the number of employees at the biggest banks. A few others are BB&T (32,809), Suntrust (28,015), Comerica (9,385), City National (Los Angeles, 2,891), Sterling Financial (Spokane, 2,601), Umpqua (1,840), Capitol Bancorp (Michigan 1,345). By the way, if you’re under a certain age, you might stay up night wondering what the heck PNC stands for. It goes back to it’s being Pittsburgh National Bank and then, presumably, Pittsburg National Corp. Now you know. The loans-to-deposit ratio at individual institutions is always interesting to us, so we looked up some data in the FDIC Quarterly Report. Total loans among all banks amount to $7.28 trillion while total deposits are $9.22 trillion. That’s a 79% loans-to-deposit…(read more)

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The NAR released Pending Home Sales data this morning. From the release: The Pending Home Sales Index, a forward-looking indicator based on contracts signed in January, fell 7.6 percent to 90.4 from an upwardly revised 97.8 in December , but remains 12.3 percent higher than January 2009 when it was 80.5. A sale is listed as "pending" when the contract has been signed but the transaction has not closed, though the sale usually is finalized within one or two months of signing . Mortgage and real estate professionals know that a signed contract is just the first step in a long process nowadays. The hard part is qualifying and closing! Since activity spiked over the seasonally supportive spring and summer months, before topping out in October, there has been a drastic drop off in sales…(read more)

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Heading toward the 3pm close, the FN 4.0 is +0-07 at 98-18 yielding 4.139% and the FN 4.5 is +0-06 at 101-12 yielding 4.347%. The FN 4.5 is 3 ticks off the intraday price high of 101-15. In the chart below you can see that we've broken out of the range that has contained price action this week. The secondary market current coupon is 4.264%. This is 2.8 basis points below yesterday's 5pm "going out" current coupon level. Ahead of the release of the monthly prepayment report tonight, "rate sheet influential" MBS yield spreads are a few basis points tighter to Treasuries and swaps. The 3.625% coupon bearing 10 year Treasury note is +0-03 at 100-04 yielding 3.608%. Since yields fell after the release of Pending Home Sales data….the market has moved mostly sideways…(read more)

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The Federal Reserve today reported on their weekly purchases of agency mortgage-backed securities (MBS). In the week ending March 3, 2010, the Federal Reserve purchased a net total of $10.00 billion agency MBS. This represents a $1 billion decline from the previous reporting period and breaks a three week streak of $11 billion net total purchases. The goal of the Federal Reserve's agency MBS program is to provide support to mortgage and housing markets and to foster improved conditions in financial markets more generally. Only fixed-rate agency MBS securities guaranteed by Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and Ginnie Mae are eligible assets for the program. The program includes, but is not limited to, 30-year, 20-year and 15-year securities of these issuers. (NY Fed MBS FAQs) Since the inception…(read more)

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Investors Business Daily this week continued playing the role of drummer boy in the relentless assault from the right on Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the Community Reinvestment Act as the chief culprits of the financial crisis. In a March 3 editorial, IBD dismisses the conclusions of the bipartisan Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission that found no reason to lay the blame of the collapse of the housing markets on CRA . The editorial even perversely characterizes CRA as “redlining” legislation, demonstrating shameful disregard for the history of housing and race in America in the 20th century. IBD’s piece is part of a meme that has taken root by way of Rush Limbaugh (“CRA was used by ACORN and their allies to wreck the mortgage market.”) and American Enterprise Institute’s…(read more)

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Its been a wild week in mortgage rate land. Lenders have repriced for the better, they have repriced for the worse, only to reprice for the better again! And that's just two days of action. Its been a roller coaster ride to say the least, but some how we've managed to end up right back where we started: MORTGAGE RATES HAVE HELD NEAR 2010 LOWS ALL WEEK The economic calender provided plenty of reason for mortgage rates to move today. The first set of data to be released was Weekly Jobless Claims. This report provides three measures on the health of the labor market: Initial Jobless Claims : totals the number of Americans who filed for first time unemployment benefits Continued Claims : totals the number of Americans who continue to file for benefits due to an inability to find a new job…(read more)

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Diane M. Cardinal was elected to the board of directors of Lenders Asset Management Corp., an announcement indicated.

Prommis Solutions LLC hired Tina Jones, according to a statement.

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Donald L. Kohn yesterday submitted a letter indicating his intent to resign as a member of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, a statement said.

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke commended Kohn for "his deep knowledge, experience, and wisdom to bear in helping to coordinate the Federal Reserve’s response to the economic and financial crisis."

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Mark K. Mason was named chairman of the board and chief executive officer at HomeStreet Bank, the financial institution reported.

Synovus Financial Corp. said that Kessel D. Stelling Jr. was chosen as the company’s president and chief operating officer.

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The new southeast regional manager at Mortgage Network Inc. is Don Bartolomucci, the company announced.

Jeff S. Bell has been appointed senior vice president and chief information officer of PHH Corp., parent of PHH Mortgage.

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Compared to February 2009, volume tumbled 23 percent.

Over the past year, the number of reverse mortgage firms has fallen 19 percent.

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1. Despite Mortgage Applications Volume Drop, Refinancing Trend Continues …
2. Quicken Loans Capital Markets Update – Mortgage Applications Rise, Consumer Credit Expected to Fall …
3. Quicken Loans Capital Markets Update – Home Sales Expected to Have Rose By 5% …

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1. Environmentally Friendly Alternatives to Having a Lawn …
2. Budget-friendly, green ways to improve your back yard …
3. Spring-cleaning tips for homeowners …

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Good Morning. Today is the NHL trade deadline. My CAPS need a stellar blue-liner to boost cup hopes. Come on McPhee…make a move! At 735, this hit news wires: Basically the Greeks need to show EU officials some legitimate progress on budget reform before emergency funding is granted. Greece's austerity plan will raise 4.4 billion Euros ($6.5 billion) via cuts and new taxes including a gaming tax, a fuel tax, special taxes on luxury goods, and a CHURCH tax (haha seriously?). The main idea is to increase credibility so they can raise some money and get creditors off their back. Germany says they are not planning on offering aid until austerity measures are implemented. This isn't really funny but its kinda funny. I wish this would go away so we can stop talking about "what ifs"…(read more)

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It’s a busy day ahead as investors will eye key data on the manufacturing industry and receive one of the top forecasting tools for the monthly employment release. Until the data hits the market, focus is on Europe as the Greek government recently new austerity measures so it can meet its deficit-cutting pledge. News reports say the plan will raise taxes and slash spending. In the US, about 90 minutes before the bell sounds, Dow futures are off 7 points to 10,392 while S&P 500 futures are about flat at 1,171.10. Meantime, commodities are on the rise. WTI crude oil is up 39 cents to $80.07 per barrel and Spot Gold is up $3.95 per ounce to $1,138.65. Key Events Today: 8:30 ― The ADP Employment Survey saw the economy shed 22K private jobs in January ― the twenty-fourth consecutive month…(read more)

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"Daddy, Daddy! Help me!" I ran into my daughter's room. It was obvious that she'd just woken up from a nightmare. She was shaking and bathed in sweat. "Daddy, it happened again - the dream. A man and a woman named Fannie and Freddie were after me. Fannie told me that I owed her $15 billion dollars. She said that I'd left off the middle initial on a 4506-T in 2003. I didn't know what she meant, something about "contractual obligations". And Freddie just stood there, grinning. They wanted all the money out of Swiss Pig, my piggy bank!" "Take it easy," I told her. "Fannie and Freddie aren't after you. They want the money from the investors, not from us taxpayers, and only if loans are delinquent. And the investors will go after the…(read more)

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I spoke Monday at a sales and production event put on by one of our retail mortgage banker clients. My client has recently partnered with a strong regional bank and implemented additional technology and business infrastructure to support its growth plans for the next 2-3 years. The audience was a group loan officers and branch managers, and the theme was to outline the company’s vision, strategies and action plans to help management execute on the growth plan. The CEO and his management team have spent the last year studying loan officer needs and the results of the recent events impacting the industry. Armed with this information, they developed a strategy to build a profitable loan officer centric mortgage bank. You see, the CEO is a past loan originator and believes a sustainable profitable…(read more)

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At 10am the Institute for Supply Management reported the servicing sector had its best month since October 2007. The Non-Manufacturing ISM index came in at 53.0 in February vs. 50.5 in January. This just beat consensus estimates for a read of 52.8. By the way…all categories except the business activity index, new orders, imports, and employment are /seasonally adjusted. The employment component of the survey rose for the third straight month…this time it was up 4 points. That's a healthy improvement. America is not the goods producing sector it was in the WWII era, the services sector will supply the majority of jobs in the future so this employment data is a bit more relevant. Unfortunately it is overshadowed by ADP data and Friday's Employment Situation Report. I am hearing whispers…(read more)

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MBS 4.5's up 1 tick at 101-04 10yr notes down 8 ticks, up 3bps to 3.64 Q: Why are MBS higher and Tsy's lower? (see red circles in chart showing closing levels vs. current) A: Fannie Buyout disambiguation carries over, supportive week, reinvestments, money managers active in lower coupons Think of it as an MBS exclusive FTQ As sad as it is for me, I have to give credit to the MBS Ninja for framing today's outperformance in the context of "MBS FTQ." For those who need the refresher, FTQ=Flight To Quality, generally refers to reallocation of investments from a riskier position to a less risky position, i.e. from stocks to bonds or in the case of MBS today from higher coupons to lower coupons. It's not uncommon to ascribe an FTQ to more than factor and MBS is no exception…(read more)

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MBS well into their highs of the day + 6 ticks on 4.5's at 101-08 8 tick price different in 10yr notes remains as they are down 2 ticks now, yield 3.62 gains follow beige book. causality is a tenuous argument. more like "lack of surprise" Yesterday, we made ongoing fuss over technical levels in tsy's at PAR on the 10yr at 3.625, as well as the 3.615 which seems to be a constant gardener this week. (not sure why it's a "gardener" but it sure has been constant… maybe something to do with "hedges." I'll think on it and get back to you…) So note the stutter step in tsy yield right at 3.625 both this AM and just recently. If the market is so inclined to rally further, the lower line at 3.615 is as good of a target as any for the last few hours of…(read more)

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Delinquencies among loans guaranteed by Freddie Mac continued to rise in January according to the Monthly Volume Summary issued last week. At the same time, the Enterprise's investment portfolio continued to contract. Loans over 90 days delinquent increased to 4.03 percent of all loans during January compared to 3.87 percent in December. The delinquency rate in January 2009 was 1.98 percent. The non-credit enhanced portion of the portfolio had a January delinquency rate of 3.13 percent compared to 3.0 percent in December while the credit-enhanced portion had a rate of 8.52 percent compared to 8.17 percent. The percentage of delinquencies in the multi-family portfolio was unchanged at 0.15 percent. Loans more than 120 days delinquent represented 2.59 percent of Freddie Mac's total fixed…(read more)

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The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) today released its Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending February 26, 2010. The survey covers over 50 percent of all US residential mortgage loan applications taken by mortgage bankers, commercial banks, and thrifts. The data gives economists a look into consumer demand for mortgage loans. A rising trend of mortgage applications indicates an increase in home buying interest, a positive for the housing industry and economy as a whole. Furthermore, in a low mortgage rate environment, such a trend implies consumers are seeking out lower monthly payments which can result in increased disposable income and therefore more money to spend on discretionary items or to pay down other debt. From the release : The Market Composite Index, a measure…(read more)

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MBS 4.5's end 4 ticks higher at 101-07 10y tsy 2 ticks lower, good for about a bp higher in yield at 3.620 All 3 major stock indexes within 0.1% of unchanged after morning and mid day gains As stocks sold, tsy's rallied 6 ticks and MBS rallied 4. Classic "tsy's a bit down, MBS a bit up" kinda day, previously discussed HERE… More data tomorrow and a day closer to NFP Time to lock? The afternoon ended as it began for MBS: rallying into consolidation. With the exception of the early morning movements in capitulation to treasuries, stocks, and data, the only real volatile movements for MBS were of the upward variety. And in somewhat of a departure from the norm, those gains merely consolidated and kept on going only to consolidate again in the last few hours near the highs…(read more)

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Early morning weakness in the bond market led lenders to publish rate sheets with higher mortgage rates yesterday morning. However, just after lunch, the fixed income sector went on a mini rally and recaptured all the morning price losses. As the price gains held until close, most lenders did reprice for the better, bringing rates back to the best levels of the year. Following yesterday’s data free day, economic reports picked up today. First out this morning was the Mortgage Bankers Association's Weekly Loan Applications Index. The MBA survey covers over 50 percent of all US residential mortgage loan applications taken by mortgage bankers, commercial banks, and thrifts. The data gives economists a look into consumer demand for mortgage loans. A rising trend of mortgage applications…(read more)

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Production on other types of real estate loans was similarly higher.

An increase in overall loan volume, however, was more moderate.

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The move was made as approved lenders have faced growing repurchase requests during the past three years.

The initiative is expected "to identify and implement policy, process, and technology enhancements to improve the compliance with underwriting and eligibility guidelines and mitigate repurchase risk."

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The growth is occurring at its Atlanta headquarters.

The company, which provides mortgage outsourcing services, expects to hire dozens of new employees this year.

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But the lender has no intention of letting its own production slide.

The chief executive officer of parent PHH Corp. told investors that PHH plans to increase market share with the help of expanded third-party originations.

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The program provides rapid Fannie Mae delivery for larger correspondents, GMAC said.

But the changes don’t signal a change in strategy.

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1. Capital Markets Update – FOMC Meeting Triggers Sell-Off in Bond Market …
2. Quicken Loans Capital Markets Update – High Durable Goods Orders Show Factories Included in Economic Recovery …
3. Quicken Loans Capital Markets Update – Home Sales Expected to Have Rose By 5% …

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1. Spring-cleaning tips for homeowners …
2. Winter Home Maintenance Checklist …
3. Three Important Tax Deductions for Homeowners …

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Relative to how busy this week is, Tuesday’s economic calendar is pretty slow. Aside from the weekly retail sales surveys, no major economic data will be released, but the afternoon features two speeches from the Federal Reserve. 90 minutes before the opening bell, equity markets are clearly looking for a positive open. The Dow looks to open 53 points higher at 10,438 and futures on the S&P 500 are up 6.30 points to 1,120.90. NYMEX crude oil futures contracts are up 63 cents to $79.33 and Gold is up $5.20 to $1,123.50. Key Events Today: 1:00 ― Eric Rosengren , president of the Boston Fed, speaks at a conference on post-crisis capital markets in Philadelphia. 2:00 ― Naranyana Kocherlakota (non-voter) , president of the Minneapolis Fed, speaks to the Allied Executives Business &…(read more)

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