The Trump Administration has signaled that it is prepared to take meaningful steps to alter the long-standing conservatorship of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which has now entered its eighteenth year. One idea some have mentioned is the potential merger of the two government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs), or their placement under common holding company ownership, writes MBA President & CEO Bob Broeksmit, CMB.
Category: News and Trends
Servicing Quote of the Week
“While the national delinquency rate inched up to 2.9%, it remains below December’s peak of 3.2%. Meanwhile serious delinquencies continue to move within a narrow band between 0.8% and 1%.”
–Molly Boesel, senior principal economist at Cotality
ICE Mortgage Monitor: Property Insurance Costs Continue to Grow
ICE Mortgage Technology, Atlanta, released its ICE Mortgage Monitor Report, highlighting a continued surge in property insurance costs.
National Housing Conference Report: Middle-Class Americans Priced Out
Middle-class Americans now face a housing affordability crisis once reserved for low-income families, according to a new report from the National Housing Conference.
TransUnion Finds Correlation Between PTI Ratios, Mortgage Delinquencies
TransUnion, Chicago, released a new analysis finding a correlation between rising payment-to-income ratios and rising mortgage delinquencies.
Redfin Shows How U.S. Housing Costs Could Return to ‘Normal’ by 2030 Under Certain Conditions
Redfin, Seattle, released a new report exploring how housing costs could return to “normal” by 2030 if home-price growth stabilizes and mortgage rates fall to 5.5%.
Jobs Up by 22,000 in August, Unemployment at 4.3%, BLS Reports
The Bureau of Labor Statistics released August jobs data Friday morning, finding that total nonfarm payroll employment ticked up by 22,000, and the unemployment rate is little changed at 4.3%.
Cotality: U.S. Delinquency Rate Steady in Q2, but Edging Up
Cotality, Irvine, Calif., released its latest Loan Performance Indicators, finding that as of the end of Q2, the number of mortgages in some kind of delinquency was 2.9%.
MBA Chart of the Week: Monthly Payroll Growth and Unemployment
Job growth slowed to just 22,000 jobs in August and estimates for the prior two months were revised down by 21,000.
Servicing Quote of the Week
“Vacant and zombie homes can hurt the value of surrounding properties and start a negative spiral in a local housing market. While we’ve seen the rate of zombie homes tick up a tiny bit this quarter, the overall rate of vacant homes and homes in the foreclosure process has remained remarkably steady.”
–Rob Barber, CEO of ATTOM