The Lede

The Hill, Nov. 16, 2015--Needham, Vicki The Federal Housing Administration's Mutual Mortgage Insurance Fund on Monday eclipsed a key benchmark for the first time since the financial crisis, reflecting an improvement in the agency's health and steering it well clear of another taxpayer infusion, according to an independent analysis sent to Congress. David Stevens, president and CEO of the Mortgage Bankers Association, urged policymakers to look carefully at the Home Equity Conversion Mortgage, the FHA's reverse mortgage program that enables withdrawal of home equity.

World Property Journal, Nov. 16, 2015 According to the Mortgage Bankers Association's Builder Application Survey Data for October 2015, mortgage applications for new home purchases decreased by 8 percent relative to the previous month.

National Mortgae News, Nov. 16, 2015--Peters, Andy Mortgage delinquency rates continued their double-digit yearly declines in the third quarter, according to TransUnion.

National Mortgage News, Nov. 16, 2015--Peters, Andy The number of underperforming loans transferred to special-servicing status dropped in October, according to Fitch Ratings.

HousingWire, Nov. 16, 2015--Galante, Carol Former FHA administrator said report validates that the policies put in place by FHA over the last 7 years have enabled FHA to strengthen its financial position while also strengthening the economy and providing access to mortgage credit.

MarketWatch, Nov. 16, 2015--Robb, Greg A reading of New York-area manufacturing remained deep in negative territory in November, a further sign of the tough sledding facing U.S. factories in a weak global economy.

CNBC, Nov. 16, 2015--Insana, Ron Given the Paris attacks, Japan's re-emergent recession, the continued crash in commodities and the softness in economic data here at home, the Federal Reserve would be ill-advised to begin normalizing interest rates in December.

Business Insider, Nov. 16, 2015--Marino, Jonathan Blackstone, the biggest private equity firm on Wall Street, has seen even greater growth in its real estate division, which today manages nearly $100 billion worth of property. Steve Schwarzman is America's landlord and he's not afraid to acknowledge it.

Wall Street Journal, Nov. 16, 2015--Grant, Peter Auction.com is launching a major push to develop stronger ties with brokers as part of a broader effort to expand its commercial-property business. The firm, which started online real-estate auctions in 2008, has been listing commercial property since 2009.

Washington Post, Nov. 16, 2015--McGregor, Jena Monday evening, the U.S. House of Representatives voted to approve a bill that would suspend new annual target compensation of $4 million each for Freddie Mac CEO Donald Layton and Fannie Mae CEO Timothy Mayopoulos. If signed into law by President Obama, the bill would return the cap on their pay to $600,000.

HousingWire, Nov. 16, 2015--Swanson, Brena There is no urgency to lower mortgage insurance premiums right now, David Stevens, Mortgage Bankers Association president and CEO, said following the Federal Housing Administration's 2015 Actuarial Report released on Monday.

New York Times, Nov. 16, 2015--Eavis, Peter The black population of Baltimore is double that of the white population. Yet in 2013, banks made more than twice as many mortgage loans to whites in the city as they did to blacks.

Wall Street Journal, Nov. 17, 2015--Pleven, Liam A spate of retailer bankruptcies this year has left owners of malls and shopping centers scrambling to fill empty stores and dented their financial results. The share prices of several real-estate investment trusts that focus on retail properties are lagging behind the overall market in 2015.

The Mortgage Bankers Association presents Know Before You Owe: Where Are We Now, a webinar in its popular Compliance Essentials Series, this Wednesday, Nov. 18.