News

The SEC outlined that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac CEOs' direct compensation will consist of an annual base salary of $750,000, fixed deferred salary at an annual rate of $2.05 million, and at-risk deferred salary with an annual target amount of $1.2 million, totaling $4 million. The at-risk deferred salary is based on performance and can be reduced. These amounts will be prorated for 2015 and both executives have the same structure that applies to other executives within the GSEs.

In the last couple of weeks, the CFPB has been under fire for alleged discrimination against its employees and subsequent retaliation against the whistleblowers. Two of the whistleblowers testified last week in a subcommittee hearing in the House Financial Services Committee.

In May, the GSE's gross mortgage portfolio shrank at a compound annualized rate of 25.9 percent, from $405.1 billion down to $395.1 billion. It was the first time since before the conservatorship began in September 2008 that the value of the gross mortgage portfolio dipped below $4 billion.

According to the FHFA report, the average level of guarantee fees charged has increased since 2009, when the report began. The guarantee fees are now two-and-a-half times their previous level from 2009 to 2014. The average fees increased from 22 basis points to 58 basis points from 2009 to 2014. From 2013 to 2014, average fees increased from 51 basis points to 58 basis points.

The National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC), the American Council of Life Insurers (ACLI), the Academic Experts in Financial Regulation (AEFR), and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce all filed briefs backing the New York-based global insurance provider's attempt to remove the SIFI tag.

According to the OCC, compliance risks remain high as banks are preparing to comply with new mortgage lending requirements, particularly those in the TILA-RESPA Integrated Disclosure (TRID) rule. The rule is scheduled to be implemented on August 1, but the CFPB has proposed the effective date to be pushed back to October 3.

Default servicing law firm Shapiro & Ingle, with offices in Alabama, North Carolina, and Tennessee, has announced the addition of four new attorneys – William Harris, Megan Hawn Gilbert, Candace Turner, and Erin Roberts – to the firm.

Smith reported that Green Tree had completed eight corrective action plans (CAPs) to address root causes of fails that had previously been uncovered, and that he found no evidence of any failures during the "cure period," which is the amount of time in which the servicer has a chance to fix the issues.

The average loan-to-value (LTV) ratio for new business decreased at both Enterprises as refinances surpassed purchase mortgage originations, which generally have higher LTV ratios. The report said that borrowers were more inclined to use the Enterprises’ refinance programs that focus mainly on deeply underwater borrowers, including the Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP).

Vacancy rates among single-family rental securitizations remained relatively flat month-over-month despite a general trend of a rising number of lease expirations, according to data reported by Morningstar Credit Ratings in its June 2015 Single-Family Research: Performance Summary Covering All Morningstar Rated Securitizations released Monday.