Category: Top National News

Bloomberg, Oct. 19, 2015–Stilwell, Victoria
The National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo sentiment gauge increased to 64 this month, the highest since October 2005, from 61 in September.

Wall Street Journal, Oct. 19, 2015–Rudegeair, Peter; Baer, Justin
Morgan Stanley ‘s bid to make its earnings less prone to market swings sputtered in the third quarter after drops in the trading and private-equity businesses led the New York firm to miss analysts’ estimates.

Bloomberg, Oct. 15, 2015
Deepak Narula, founder of Metacapital Management, discusses the state of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and why this is the time to wind down the programs.

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Oct. 15, 2015–Editorial Board
New mortgage regulations promise greater transparency in what consumers pay for a home loan. This editorial says one change may let some people acquire mortgages with payments they may not be able to afford in a few years.

Washington Post, Oct. 15, 2015–Orton, Kathy
Mortgage rates wandered higher this week, according to the latest data released Thursday by Freddie Mac. But they soon may be headed back down again. Meanwhile, the new mortgage disclosure rules caused applications to nosedive this week, according to the latest data from the Mortgage Bankers Association.

National Mortgage News, Oct. 15, 2015–Collins, Brian
As Bill Cosgrove’s time as chairman of the Mortgage Bankers Association comes to a close, the experience has shown him how crucial it is for fellow CEOs to get outside the four walls of their companies and be more active in Washington and in their state capitals.

American Banker, Oct. 15, 2015–Witkowski, Rachel
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau finalized a rule Thursday that requires lenders to collect more information from borrowers as part of mortgage disclosures.

Washington Post, Oct. 15, 2015–McLean, Bethany
The author of Shaky Ground: the Strange Saga of the Mortgage Giants said Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac agglomerated too much power before going bust, but simply getting rid of them is not practical.

Wall Street Journal, Oct. 15, 2015–Rexrode, Christina; Rudegeair, Peter
Citigroup Inc. turned in better-than-expected third-quarter profits, despite an industrywide drop in bond trading and concerns about its international business.

HousingWire, Oct. 15, 2015–Garrison, Trey
Goldman Sachs Group reported net revenues of $6.86 billion and net earnings of $1.43 billion for the third quarter ended September 30, missing expectations.