The Lede

Consumer credit default rates held steady in February, reported Experian, New York.

The Federal Housing Administration last week announced long-anticipated changes to its loan-level certification form.

The Mortgage Bankers Association, in a letter yesterday to FHA, expressed concerns about a $500 fee cap for processing assumptions for low-rate FHA mortgages and asked that the cap be adjusted to reflect actual costs lenders incur when processing an assumption.

Market volatility in the broader capital markets has increased the spreads investors demand for commercial mortgage-backed securities in recent months, leading many Wall Street analysts to reduce their expectations for 2016 CMBS issuance by 25 percent and more.

The House, by unanimous consent, approved yesterday a Mortgage Bankers Association-supported bill that would extend the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act through 2017.

National Mortgage News, Mar. 17, 2016--Finkelstein, Brad If the Federal Reserve raises short-term rates in June, market volatility will spur investors to buy long-term bonds, driving down the 30-year mortgage rate to around 3%, consultant Barry Habib argues.

HousingWire, Mar. 21, 2016--Swanson, Brena Nearly six months after the implementation of TRID and the market finally turned a corner as the time to close all loans decreased to 46 days, which is the shortest time to close since May 2015, said Ellie Mae President and CEO Jonathan Corr.

Suburban Times (Wash.), Mar. 21, 2016 Monday the House of Representatives passed S. 2393, the Foreclosure Relief and Extension for Servicemembers Act of 2015, to extend foreclosure protection for military homeowners.

Wall Street Journal, Mar. 21, 2016--Light, Joe The plan approved by the Federal Housing Finance Agency marks the first time that Fannie and Freddie will reduce mortgage balances on a large scale for struggling homeowners since the housing crisis erupted. But it doesn't go as far as some housing advocates wanted.

Bloomberg, Mar. 21, 2016--Chiglinsky, Katherine Genworth Financial Inc. shares gained after bondholders agreed to changes sought by Chief Executive Officer Tom McInerney as he reshapes the insurer and seeks to rebound from losses on long-term care coverage.

National Mortgage News, Mar. 21, 2016--Sinnock, Bonnie As a handful of new issuers enter the market and the implementation of a key regulation pave the way for subprime securitization's comeback, the volume of new loans that are actually available to the market remains a question.

DSNews, Mar. 21, 2016--West, Xhevrije The non-qualified mortgage loan market has originators a bit wary toward borrowers and questioning if the risk is really worth it.

HousingWire, Mar. 18, 2016--Swanson, Brena Fannie Mae announced its first Credit Insurance Risk Transfer transactions of 2016, shifting the credit risk on pools of single-family loans with a combined unpaid principal balance of approximately $19.5 billion to a group of insurers and reinsurers.

National Mortgage News, Mar. 18, 2016--Collins, Brian As servicers downsize their loss mitigation units, housing counselors are finding the companies' designated points of contact are less experienced, making it more difficult to get packages approved for troubled borrowers.

Builder Magazine, Mar. 18, 2016--Croce, Brian It's been more than five months since the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's TILA-RESPA Integrated Disclosure (TRID) went into effect with the main goal of simplifying the home closing process for consumers. The result--a lot of moving parts.

National Mortgage Professional, Mar. 16, 2016--Lykken, David We need to be held to a higher standard if we want to survive and thrive in a tough economy. The better represented consumers are, the more prosperous they will be. And, as consumers become more prosperous, so can the mortgage industry.

HousingWire, Mar. 17, 2016--Swanson, Brena The net gain on each loan originated by independent mortgage banks and mortgage bank subsidiaries plummeted 60 percent in fourth-quarter 2015 due to the implementation of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's TILA-RESPA Integrated Disclosures rule in October, the Mortgage Bankers Association reported.

HousingWire, Mar. 15, 2016--Gaffney, Jacob Wall street investment bank JP Morgan is putting together a massive residential mortgage-backed securities deal for the private market.

National Mortgage News, Mar. 15, 2016--Collins, Brian Ginnie Mae needs more and better paid staff to keep up with growing risks on nonbank seller/servicers, the watchdog agency head said.

Wall Street Journal, Mar. 15, 2016--Borak, Donna The chairman of the House Financial Services Committee on Tuesday previewed a Republican plan to revamp the 2010 Dodd-Frank financial overhaul law, a proposal that would ease regulations for community banks and mandate a cost analysis of proposed policy changes.

MultifamilyBiz.com, Mar. 15, 2016 Commercial/multifamily mortgage debt outstanding increased to $2.83 trillion in the fourth quarter, an increase of $59.7 billion, or 2.2 percent, over the third quarter, according to data collected by the Mortgage Bankers Association.

National Mortgage Professional, Mar. 15, 2016--Hall, Phil A coalition of 17 financial and housing trade associations has called on House and Senate leaders to include language in the Fiscal Year 2017 Budget to prevent efforts to use guarantee fees (g-fees) collected by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac for non-housing purposes. The Mortgage Bankers Association is among the groups.

Scotsman Guide, Mar. 15, 2016--Whitman, Victor CMBS loans aren't competitive right now against other commercial loan types because of turbulence in the bond markets, analysts say. "Since the beginning of the year, an awful lot of analysts have cut their projections for 2016 by 25 percent to 30 percent or more," said Jamie Woodwell, MBA's vice president of research.

Wall Street Journal, Mar. 15, 2016--Light, Joe The Federal Housing Administration on Tuesday unveiled a new certification that lenders must attest to when making an FHA-backed mortgage. Mortgage Bankers Association President and CEO David Stevens, CMB, said the changes could "stop the bleeding" of lenders pulling back from the FHA program.

HousingWire, Mar. 16, 2016--Gaffney, Jacob Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Richard Cordray, appearing before the House Financial Services Committee, said consumer complaints against mortgage lenders and servicers are nearly at a half million.