Fannie Mae Posts $1.1B Profit in 1Q; Paying $919M Dividend

Associated Press, May 5, 2016–Gordon, Marcy
Mortgage giant Fannie Mae posted net income of $1.1 billion for the first quarter, down from a year ago as declining interest rates reduced the value of the financial instruments it uses to hedge against rate swings.

Fannie Mae CEO Says it’s Not Sustainable to Operate Without Capital

MarketWatch, May 5, 2016–Riquier, Andrea
Fannie Mae CEO Fannie CEO Tim Mayopoulos called it “not sustainable” to operate without capital just after his company reported a $1.14 billion profit in the first three months of the year, the 17th consecutive quarter of profitability.

Fannie Mae CEO: Private Capital Unwilling to Step Into Mortgages

HousingWire, May 5, 2016–Gaffney, Jacob
For all the calls to reduce the roles Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac play in the mortgage finance world, Timothy Mayopoulos shared this point: Private capital is “unwilling to step in” to replace the government-sponsored enterprises as mortgage finance leaders in the secondary market.

AIG Said to Target $4 Billion Valuation in Mortgage Unit’s IPO

Bloomberg, May 5, 2016–Barinka, Alex; Basak, Sonali
American International Group Inc.’s mortgage insurer, United Guaranty Corp., is seeking to raise about $700 million to $800 million as it sells shares to the public.

Montana High Court Upholds Award over Mortgage Foreclosure

Associated Press, May 5, 2016
The Montana Supreme Court has upheld $426,000 in damages and attorney’s fees awarded to a couple who sued a loan servicing company alleging it violated federal and state laws in repeatedly trying to foreclose on their house.

Turns Out Strategic Mortgage Defaults Weren’t Really Strategic

Arizona Republic, May 7, 2016–Wiles, Russ
Despite a lot of media attention at the time paid to strategic defaulters, they were rare: fewer than 1% of households with the financial means to pay instead chose to walk away.

Home Builders Say They Are Squeezed by Rising Compliance Costs

Wall Street Journal, May 7, 2016–Kirkham, Chris
The average cost for home builders to comply with regulations for new home construction has increased by nearly 30% over the last five years, according to new research from the National Association of Home Builders.

Mortgage Fraud Risk Highest in Miami

24/7 Wall Street, May 6, 2016–Ausick, Paul
Based on the latest data from CoreLogic’s mortgage fraud risk index, mortgage lenders in the Miami metropolitan area face the highest risk for attempts to commit fraud.

MountainView Advises Sale of $4.7B Portfolio of Fannie, Freddie MSRs

National Mortgage News, May 6, 2016–Passy, Jacob
MountainView Servicing Group in Denver said Friday that it is the exclusive advisor for the sale of a bulk mortgage servicing rights portfolio with Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and Ginnie Mae loans. The bulk portfolio carries $4.7 billion of unpaid principal balance.