|
|
Mortgage Headlines
|
powered by
|
 |
|
|
Last Updated Monday, January 06, 2003 11:31 AM CST
|
|
Max FHA Loan Now $280,749
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development announced last week that the loan limit on Federal Housing Administration (FHA) insured single-family mortgages will increase to a maximum of $280,749 in high cost areas. In low cost areas, the new limit is $154,896. The annual FHA increase follows Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae's conforming loan limit increase, announced in November.
How Low Can They Go?
Freddie Mac reported that the average 30-year fixed rate mortgage was 5.85% -- its lowest point since Freddie began tracking it in 1971. The average 15-year fell eight basis points from last week to a record low 5.24%, Freddie said. The average one-year adjustable rate mortgage rose five BPS from last week record low to 4.06%, according to Freddie's survey. The Mortgage Bankers Association of America said overall applications rose 4.7% from last week, with the application index reaching 950.9.
Bankers, Appraiser Accused in Builder Fraud Case
According to a copy of an FBI affidavit completed in May, A. William Erpenbeck, Jr., who was president of homebuilder The Erpenbeck Company, directed his employees to deposit checks made out to construction lenders to the company's own account at Peoples Bank of Northern Kentucky. The FBI estimates that Erpenbeck diverted approximately $25 million in construction payoff proceeds to the company account. The affidavit accuses two bank executives of falsely listing down payments in order to secure loans on properties they purchased from Erpenbeck. A Kentucky appraiser is also being investigated for her role in determining values on properties that were financed for more than the loan amount.
COFI Tumbles to Lowest Level in Decades
According to the Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco, the monthly weighted average cost of funds index (COFI) for savings institutions in the 11th District fell to 2.537% in November, down from 2.708% in October. With this latest drop, the COFI stands at its lowest level in decades.
Mortgage Rates Hit New Record Lows
Freddie Mac found the average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage to be 5.93% for the week ending Dec. 27 -- down a bit from last week's 6.03%, and way down from last year's 7.16%. The annual average for the 30-year for 2002 was about 6.5%, the lowest annual average in more than 31 years, said Frank Nothaft, chief economist at Freddie. The Mortgage Bankers Association of America's index of mortgage loan applications came in at 908.3 for the week ending Dec. 20, a 7.8% decrease from the prior week's 985.5.
Apartment Lending Rises at ABN AMRO
ABN AMRO Apartment Lending reported an increase in lending for the month of November. It produced $123 million in loans during November, an almost 3.4% increase from October's $119 million in production. The information required for disclosure includes applications for loans, originations, and purchases, as well as type, purpose, and amount of the loans.
HMDA Exemption Stays at $32 Million Asset Size
The reporting threshold for the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) will remain unchanged for 2003, the Federal Reserve Board announced Tuesday. The asset-size exemption for banks will stay at $32 million, the board said.
ABN AMRO November Production Falls
ABN AMRO Mortgage Group, Inc. announced originating almost $12.7 billion in loans for the month, bringing its YTD to a record $106.7 billion. The November total is an almost 18.6% dip from October's nearly $15.6 billion in lending, but a 25% increase from last year at this time.
NHEMA Sues OTS
The National Home Equity Mortgage Association (NHEMA) sued the U.S. Office of Thrift Supervision (OTS) Friday over new regulations affecting prepayment and late fee rules on mortgage loans. NHEMA's goal is for the court to rule that the OTS acted beyond its authority in adopting the regulations. NHEMA is hoping to have the new rules eliminated all together.
$35.4 Million Production at Cambridge
Cambridge Realty Capital Companies reported originating a total of $75.4 million in senior and healthcare loans from January to October. That's a $35.4 million increase from the $40 million in closings Cambridge reported for the first six months.
HEL Delinquency Falls
The latest Consumer Delinquency Bulletin by the American Bankers Association revealed that late mobile home loans dropped to 5.38% during the third quarter ending Sept. 30, compared with 5.81% during the second quarter. Late payments on home equity lines dropped to 0.58% during the third quarter, compared with 0.64% in the second quarter.
Wells Leads Originations in Fairfax County
A batch of sample maps reveal the top mortgage lenders in specific geographical regions, and are being marketed by CBMI as a new way to keep check on the competition. The sample map for Fairfax County, Va., shows the top lenders for January through September 2002. According to the map, Wells Fargo Mortgage Inc., based in Des Moines, Iowa, is No. 1 lender for the area with $127.9 million. The sample maps do not include government-insured loans, although lenders can obtain reports that do map such loans, he said.
Freddie Economist Says Rates May Fall
Mortgage loan applications picked up to 985.5 for the week ending Dec. 13, a 14.2% increase from the previous week's 862.7, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association of America's index. The average one-year ARM plunged to 4.07% for the week ending Dec. 20, the lowest level recorded by Freddie Mac since the mortgage giant began tracking it in 1984. "Over the last few days financial markets have been experiencing some nervousness about war in the Middle East and this may cause some downward pressure on interest rate, which could possibly lower mortgage rates a little more in the coming weeks," said Frank Nothaft, chief economist at Freddie.
Freddie November Purchases Edge Up
Freddie Mac reported $74.3 billion in purchases, a slight advance from October's $73.6 billion. Its mortgage portfolio holds a $1.279 trillion balance, Freddie reported, and its retained portfolio totals $549.3 billion. Freddie's duration gap was flat during November, compared with negative-one month in October.
Scores Vary Substantially Among Repositories
The "Credit Score Accuracy and Implications for Consumers" study analyzed more than 500,000 individual credit files, and found that scores reported by the three repositories varied substantially. The joint effort between the National Credit Reporting Association and the Consumer Federation of America is an attempt to point out inequities in the mortgage credit approval system and to weigh the impact of those inequities. The study found that among 1,704 of merged credit files studied manually, almost one in 10 was missing a credit score from at least one repository. Only 21% or one out of five of the total files had a range of fewer than 20 points between the lowest and highest scores; 31% had a range of 50 points or greater between scores; and 5% had a range of 100 points or greater between scores.
Conseco Bankruptcy Among Largest in U.S. History
After four years of heavy losses and deep debt, Conseco, Inc. filed chapter 11 bankruptcy Tuesday night, and its finance unit has entered an agreement to sell its assets, according to federal court documents.In terms of assets, the filing would be among the largest in U.S. corporate history, behind WorldCom Inc.'s $107 billion and Enron Corp.'s $63.4 billion, according to the Wall Street Journal online. In addition to the filing, Conseco's finance unit announced that it has reached an agreement in principle to sell its assets and operations to CFN Investment Holdings LLC.
Reverse Loans Gaining Momentum
Reverse mortgages are on the rise, as is the longevity of the country's elderly. Older homeowners benefit from types of mortgages, in addition to the lenders that offer them. The National Reverse Mortgage Lenders Association (NRMLA) announced in October that lenders closed a record 63% more federally-insured reverse mortgage loans during fiscal year (FY) 2002 ending Sept. 30 than during the record FY 1999. A reverse mortgage loan allows home owners age 62 and over to convert home equity into cash without having to make monthly payments on the loan, according to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The lender gets back the principal plus interest upon the sale of the home or the death of the borrower.
Smaller Towns at Highest CMBS Delinquency Risk
Moody's Investors Service's report on real estate delinquencies in commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS) found that the smaller the town, the greater the chance for a commercial building's mortgage to go delinquent. The finding is based on all commercial property types. The "CMBS Delinquency Report Card: From A to Incomplete" also found that, conversely, delinquencies for all property types usually are lowest in larger cities. The study also found the top five states by percentage with the highest CMBS loan delinquency were Tennessee, Iowa, Louisiana, Oregon, Ohio, and New Mexico.
Record Business Volume at Fannie
Fannie Mae reported almost $95.6 billion in business volume, compared with October's $95.1 billion. Fannie's book of business grew to $1.779 trillion from October's $1.769 trillion. The company's gross mortgage portfolio grew to $760.8 billion from October's $751.3 billion
Fake Gift Funds, Income Cited in Massachusetts Fraud Case
Angel L. Serrano Jr., 41, of Potomac Falls, Va., was charged with wire fraud and false statements. The U.S. Department of Justice alleges that between 1996 and 1997, he purchased and sold distressed properties in Massachusetts the same day without informing the lenders. The indictment states that Serrano hid the land-flips from the original sellers and the lending institutions and deceived low-income buyers into submitting fraudulent loan applications to the lender. If convicted, Serrano faces up to five years imprisonment, in addition to a $25,000 fine for each of the three counts of the indictment.
|
|
This mortgage news summary reprinted with permission of
|
|
|
For the entire text of any of these stories please visit
|
|
|
|
