Category: Top National News

New York Times, Apr. 25, 2019–Stacy CowleyMorgan Stanley agreed to pay $150 million to settle claims by the State of California that it misled investors about the risks of mortgage-backed securities sold to two state pension funds for teachers and public employees.

Commercial Property Executive, Apr. 24, 2019–Jeffrey SteeleHow will CMBS origination stack up this year? After the first several months of 2019, signs continue to point to a significant decline in volume, though some observers contend the reduction could be less severe than expected. (MBA mention)

American Banker, Apr. 24, 2019–Kevin Wack (subscription)Last year, the former top regulatory official overseeing Wells Fargo stood accused of improperly disclosing sensitive information about a government investigation to the scandal-plagued bank. Now Bradley Linskens is getting a new job at the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, where he has worked for more than two decades.

Reuters, Apr. 23, 2019–Jonathan StempelGeneral Electric Co on Tuesday put the remnants of its WMC Mortgage unit into bankruptcy, 11 days after paying a $1.5 billion U.S. fine over defective subprime mortgages issued by WMC before the 2008 financial crisis.

Bloomberg, Apr. 23, 2019–Christopher MaloneyAnalyst teams at Morgan Stanley and J.P. Morgan have raised their recommendations on the agency mortgage-backed securities sector following the recent widening of mortgage spreads.

HousingWire, Apr. 23, 2019–Jessica GuerinHomeowners have claims regarding their reverse mortgages with Reverse Mortgage Solutions, a Ditech subsidiary that that was either the lender or servicer on the loans that were part of an alleged scheme. But now, Ditech is in the midst of a bankruptcy that might impact these fraud victims.

Wall Street Journal, Apr. 22, 2019–Andrew Ackerman, Ben Eisen (subscription)Mark Calabria, in his first interview since taking the helm of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, said he wants to put Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac–bailed out during the crisis, but now profitable–on the road toward returning to private hands, something Washington policy makers have tried and failed to do for the past decade.

Mortgage Media, April 22, 2019–David Stevens, CMBFormer MBA President & CEO says to protect generational impact of GSE reform process, policymakers must ensure the permanence of some of the most critical issues before any consideration to recapitalization and release.

Washington Post, Apr. 22, 2019–Renae MerleThe housing companies may have found a way around a congressionally mandated pay cap. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac created a new job–president–transferring some of the work traditionally done by the CEOs to the new positions, according to government investigators. The presidents will be paid more than $3 million each.

HousingWire, Apr. 22, 2019–Ben LaneAccording to the new analysis from the Urban Institute, the level of mortgage credit available for loans backed by the Federal Housing Administration, Department of Veterans Affairs, and Department of Agriculture was higher during the fourth quarter than it was during any quarter since 2009.