Tue, Apr 13 2010, 6:11 PM
Despite a few instances of volatility above, we see 10yr yields gradually "coasting" into a roughly 3.82 level ahead of tomorrow's CPI data and Bernan...
Tue, Apr 13 2010, 4:26 PM
Hearings on Subprime Lending and Securitization and Government-Sponsored Enterprises," were conducted last week by the Financial Crisis Inquiry Commis...
Tue, Apr 13 2010, 2:36 PM
If Ben's tight rope walk is balanced and the short-end of the yield curve rallies as a result, it sure would make it a heck of a lot easier for the 10...
Mon, Apr 12 2010, 12:05 PM
Mon, Apr 12 2010, 11:17 AM
The Special Inspector General for the HAMP program concludes its report to Secretary Geithner with a series of recommendations including a restatement...
Mon, Apr 12 2010, 10:57 AM
Mortgage Insurance Updates; Credit Union Shut Down; HUD Accepts Electronic Signatures; Wells Reminds About Appraisal Flipping
Mon, Apr 12 2010, 10:13 AM
Mon, Apr 12 2010, 8:33 AM
Although Monday begins the week on a slow note in terms of fresh data, the rest of the week is packed with housing data, retail sales, industrial prod...
Mon, Apr 12 2010, 5:26 PM
Searching for the causality behind today's stellar performance in bonds has left even some smart folks guessing. Reasons offered include "end of the ...
Mon, Apr 12 2010, 2:41 PM
When the day began, lender rate sheets were very similar where they were set on Friday, however both benchmark Treasury yields and mortgage-backed sec...
Mon, Apr 12 2010, 2:18 PM
Though there are several ways to approach the strength in bonds this afternoon, leading candidates include upcoming Federal Reserve speakers who have ...
Fri, Apr 9 2010, 11:32 AM
This week, I visited a small North West retail mortgage banker that is doing around $20M per month. I was hired to perform a FOCIS study on the compa...
Fri, Apr 9 2010, 11:10 AM
Sales of bank-owned properties and short sales as a percentage of all existing home sold are again nearing the record levels set last Spring according...
Fri, Apr 9 2010, 10:55 AM
FHA to Accept Electronic Signatures; Closing, Settlement, Funding, and Signing Discrepancies; Does a GFE Need a Property Address?
Fri, Apr 9 2010, 10:24 AM
This modest retracement is not out of the ordinary and definitely not unwelcome by MBS valuations. I hope I was able to provide enough justification t...
Fri, Apr 9 2010, 8:38 AM
The week ends with a very quiet day, at least in terms of data. Ahead of wholesale inventories, the dollar is weaker and equities are trading higher, ...
Fri, Apr 9 2010, 5:17 PM
Mortgage rates spent this week slowly recovering from a healthy losing streak. If you were floating two weeks ago, when mortgage rates started this lo...
Fri, Apr 9 2010, 4:48 PM
Starting on Monday, because the April coupon has already entered into settlement, MBS investors will have to wait until May 1 to see their funds start...
Fri, Apr 9 2010, 1:33 PM
Couple significant technical events in the past hour... The charts make it look as if the market reacted to a specific news or econ item, but so far,...
Thu, Apr 8 2010, 12:49 PM
The 10 yr note yield has risen to its highest yield of the day amidst position squaring. The 3.625% coupon bearing 10 year note is currently -0-03 at ...
Thu, Apr 8 2010, 11:46 AM
An MBA funding study has documented that the recession and its accompanying unemployment is adversely affecting the formation of new households. Chil...
Thu, Apr 8 2010, 11:01 AM
If you are a mortgage banker, you know what the new four letter word is: COMPLIANCE. Investors, regulators and consumers will be using compliance viol...
Thu, Apr 8 2010, 10:33 AM
Changes in Originator Commission Plans; Prepayment Speeds and Delinquency Buyouts; No Fee Reverse Mortgages; Commercial Loan Rankings
Thu, Apr 8 2010, 9:49 AM
You know the story. We forecast a test of 4.00% back in December. That test happened in extremely illiquid quarter-end conditions after a run of bett...
Thu, Apr 8 2010, 8:23 AM
In the footsteps of weak global markets, US equity futures are sharply lower this morning, further subtracting from yesterday’s losses. “Across-the-bo...
Thu, Apr 8 2010, 4:46 PM
I continue to favor floating one day at a time. Lenders are being very slow to pass along the price gains we have enjoyed over the last couple days. ...
Thu, Apr 8 2010, 4:21 PM
4.5's down 2 ticks on the day to 100-00. 10yr note up about 2.3bps at 3.886. Stocks back at 1187 in S&P. Bernanke speaks later this evening. Limited...
Thu, Apr 8 2010, 4:09 PM
It is a common belief that one must have a lot of equity in their home to qualify for a reverse mortgage. In reality, a reverse mortgage can be done i...
Thu, Apr 8 2010, 1:56 PM
The Treasury has successfully auctioned $13 billion 30 year bonds. Four of the last five long bond auctions have been at this size, so the market is a...
Wed, Apr 7 2010, 12:54 PM
The National Association of Realtors is reporting that sales of vacation homes rose at a greater rate than overall home sales in 2009. Investment-hom...
Wed, Apr 7 2010, 12:36 PM
Things are either going to get really great, really quick for MBS, or insanely volatile. EXPECT THE VOLATILITY! THESE ARE BIG TIMES IN THE BOND MARK...
Wed, Apr 7 2010, 10:54 AM
Refinance application volume dropped as mortgage rates reached their highest level since August 2009. Purchase volume was essentially unchanged relat...
Wed, Apr 7 2010, 10:16 AM
FHA net worth requirements; loan profitability study; primer on FHA Compare Ratios & Neighborhood Watch
Wed, Apr 7 2010, 9:58 AM
Production profits among independent mortgage bankers and their subsidiaries dipped slightly during the fourth quarter of 2009 according to survey res...
Wed, Apr 7 2010, 8:30 AM
Stock markets are soft and bonds are better bid ahead of afternoon speeches by Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke and the lone FOMC dissenter Tom H...
Wed, Apr 7 2010, 6:37 PM
As far as locking and floating, I'd probably take certain deals off the table if I promised some higher power that I would do so if they could just he...
Wed, Apr 7 2010, 5:40 PM
Mortgage rates are slowly rallying away from the highs of 2010 after a two successful Treasury auctions. I continue to favor floating my loans, but wi...
Wed, Apr 7 2010, 3:25 PM
"Today the financial crisis looks to be mostly behind us, and the economy seems to have stabilized and is beginning to grow again. But we are far from...
Wed, Apr 7 2010, 1:46 PM
"Rate Sheet Influential" Treasuries and MBS are rallying after a very strong 10 year Treasury note auction. Reprices for the better are likely...
Tue, Apr 6 2010, 12:15 PM
Stage 1 of the Fed's exit looks to be behind us with only minimal damage done. Rising mortgage rates have been more a function of higher benchmark yie...
Tue, Apr 6 2010, 10:32 AM
Negative equity, high back-end ratios, and the existence of second liens are just a few of the problems the Solicitor General reports may impede the s...
Tue, Apr 6 2010, 10:25 AM
More flood insurance updates worth noting; seller financing increasing; problems with modifying 2nds
Tue, Apr 6 2010, 10:01 AM
Overseas rates traders came back to work today to find much cheaper bond prices and higher "risk free" yields thus, "rate sheet influential Treasuries...
Tue, Apr 6 2010, 8:22 AM
The dollar is stronger but equity futures and commodity prices are each trading lower. The economic docket is empty this morning but in the afternoon ...
Tue, Apr 6 2010, 5:19 PM
Treasury yields did move lower today and MBS prices rose which has allowed lenders to offer better pricing. With that said, I continue to favor floati...
Tue, Apr 6 2010, 3:08 PM
Overall, continued cautiousness is obvious. Much is still uncertain from their point of view, but there is plenty of weakness to warrant an exceptiona...
Tue, Apr 6 2010, 2:23 PM
Consumers are still committed to owning a home, but are showing increased cautiousness, regardless of whether they rent, own their homes outright or h...
Tue, Apr 6 2010, 1:23 PM
It's going to FEEL uncomfortable to float "on the edge" deals that you would prefer to float until tomorrow but IF we see any reprices, they won't be ...
