Although the third quarter of 2015 only saw seven RMBS transactions from six issuers, a continued decline from 12 transactions in the first quarter and 10 transactions in the second quarter, the 29 transactions and approximately $10.1 billion of issuance so far this year have already exceeded the 26 transactions and $8.3 billion issued for the entire year of 2014.
Read More »Treasury Official Decries Push to ‘Recap and Release’ Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac
In an editorial titled “How Not to Fix Fannie and Freddie,” Antonio Weiss, Counselor to the Treasury Secretary, called the push to recapitalize the GSEs and release them from the FHFA’s conservatorship “misguided.” Weiss claims that such a “recap and release” proposal, if executed, could raise the cost of mortgages and potentially expose American taxpayers to another bailout.
Read More »Despite Economic Headwinds, Housing Market is a Bright Spot for Economy
The macroeconomic picture in the U.S. continues to battle economic headwinds—namely a September jobs report that came in below expectations and an appreciating dollar which will pressure the already growing U.S. trade deficit, Fannie Mae said. Yet, housing remains in a fairly positive zone, considering all of the factors weighing it down.
Read More »Household Formation Has Accelerated After Eight Years at Low Levels
The two primary drivers of household formation over time are demographic and economic factors, according to Nothaft. For example, household growth averaged about 2 percent annually from the mid-1960s until the early 1980s when baby boomers were at the prime household formation age, but household formation rates halved from 1990 until the mid-2000s when the population of those born in the 1970s, a much smaller birth cohort, reached their 20s.
Read More »SunTrust, Comerica Offer a Mixed Bag in Q3 Results
SunTrust and Comerica earned mixed reviews after reporting year-over-year profit declines in the third quarter, according to the banks' earnings statements released Friday.
Read More »Mortgage REITs Unlikely to Catch a Break in Q3
KBW pointed to Starwood Waypoint’s merger with Colony American Homes as a boon for the firm, saying “while dilutive to book value,” the deal will resolve strategic issues that “SWAY has been facing including scale and its externally managed corporate structure.”
Read More »Investors Are Effectively No Longer Overpaying for Assets
Investors are effectively no longer overpaying for assets in the residential housing market, according to Auction.com EVP Rick Sharga in the company’s quarterly housing update on Thursday. But for those investors paying at or close to market value for their ...
Read More »Citigroup, U.S. Bancorp Profitable in Q3 While Goldman Sachs Net Revenues are Down
Citigroup reported $4.3 billion in net income for the third quarter, or $1.35 per diluted share, up 53 percent from $2.8 billion, or $0.88 per share, in the same quarter a year ago. The bank also has revenues that reached $18.7 billion, down from $19.7 billion last year.
Read More »Government’s Control of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac Unlikely to Change, Analyst Says
Swann and his team wrote in a report to clients that the impasse among lawmakers as to the future of the GSEs, the fact that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have been profitable since 2012, and the near recovery of most housing markets have made the privatization of the GSEs or any type of reform unlikely for the foreseeable future.
Read More »Fed Districts Report Continued Moderated Economic Expansion
The reporting period for the latest Beige Book found residential housing markets have generally improved since the last report with increasing home prices and sales volumes driving the improved housing markets.
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