Tag Archives: RMBS

Lenders across the country are facing demands from mortgage investors to buy back faulty loans. Analysts praised Bank of America's settlement with the GSEs earlier the month for setting a precedent that other banks could follow to reconcile with investors, but some community lenders are already ahead of the game. StellarOne Corporation in Virginia says it has reached an agreement with one of its primary mortgage investors to resolve repurchase and indemnification claims to the tune of $1.45 million.

Amherst Securities Group, a financial services provider to institutional investors in the mortgage sector, has hired three mortgage industry veterans for its sales division. Peter Davidson, Chris Heaney, and Chris O'Neill will help expand Amherst's client base and build on the services provided to existing clients. The company says their combined industry expertise and established client relationships across a wide range of accounts will deepen Amherst's presence in the mortgage-backed securities (MBS) space.

The Friday ruling by the Massachusetts Supreme Court that invalidated two foreclosures by U.S. Bank and Wells Fargo has prompted an outpouring of responses from the industry, and many are wondering if the ruling will have far reaching effects on other foreclosure sales. The Supreme Court ruled the banks did not have the legal right to foreclose on homes in the state because they did not have proper documentation to prove they owned the mortgages at the time of foreclosure.

The Massachusetts Supreme Court ruled Friday that U.S. Bank and Wells Fargo did not have the legal right to foreclose on two homes in the state, invalidating the lenders' seizure of the properties and raising further questions about foreclosure documentation - this time related to the proper transfer of ownership on mortgages packaged as securities. Analysts warn that the decision could have far-reaching implications on loans that have already been liquidated, those in the process of foreclosure, and sales of bank-owned homes.

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is reportedly investigating lenders' procedures for packaging home mortgages into securities bonds for sale to investors. Reuters, citing two sources familiar with the probe, says the SEC sent subpoenas last week to Bank of America, Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase, Goldman Sachs, and Wells Fargo. The subpoenas focus on the earliest stage of the mortgage securitization process, in particular, the role of master servicers.

Independent mortgage banks and their subsidiaries made an average profit of $1,423 on each loan they originated in the third quarter, thanks to a surge in refinance activity and growing demand for mortgage-backed securities, the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) reported Tuesday. The third quarter's per-loan profit represents a jump of more than 55 percent from the $917 independent mortgage lenders made on each loan in the second quarter of this year.

The time mortgage loan servicers take to resolve delinquent loans through modification or foreclosure varies widely. According to an analysis by Moody's Investors Service, Bank of America has demonstrated the weakest performance measured both by its speed in resolving the status of delinquent loans and by its proportion of delinquent loans that have yet to be resolved. The ratings agency found that GMAC Mortgage, on the other hand, has generally performed better than its peers.

Freddie Mac announced Tuesday that beginning in January 2011, the company will begin disclosing pool-level delinquency data on a monthly basis for all single-family Freddie Mac Participation Certificate (PC) and Giant PC securities. Freddie Mac says providing this delinquency disclosure data at the pool level will make the company's delinquency disclosures consistent with an industry practice previously established by Ginnie Mae.

MountainView Capital Holdings, a provider of financial services for institutions participating in the mortgage and fixed income capital markets, has announced the formation of MountainView Portfolio Analytics, a business unit specializing in valuation of residential whole loans, securitized loans, and REO. The company has been providing valuation services for over 20 years but says it decided to create a separate business unit due to increased market demand.

Analytics provider FICO recently announced that Experian Capital Markets is adding FICO credit scores to its CreditHorizons for Securities solution. Sellers and investors of mortgage-backed securities (MBS) use Experian's CreditHorizons for Securities to surmount the limitations of loan-level data when analyzing credit risk in potential bond investments. FICO says the addition of the FICO score will give securities managers, marketers, and investors deeper insight into the creditworthiness of underlying mortgages in loan pools.