Daily Dose

On Wednesday, the Urban Institute (UI) issued a report finding that, based on the latest numbers, Ginnie's book of business is now at $1.5 trillion—a rate of growth that has tripled over the last seven years. What this means is that at its current rate of growth, Ginnie Mae will soon surpass Freddie Mac as the silver medalist in the single-family mortgage securitization platform game, behind Fannie Mae.

According to Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey, the average interest rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) product was 4.12 percent (0.5 point) for the week ending July 3. Rates remained down year-over-year for the second straight week, "which should provide some help with homebuyer affordability in many markets," said Frank Nothaft, chief economist for Freddie Mac.

According to Realtor.com, the median listing price of homes in May this year was $214,900, a rise of 8 percent compared to year-ago levels. "This May's housing market stands in significant contrast to last year in which price increases were less generalized and more concentrated in specific metropolitan areas," the company said. "This broad increase in price suggests a more evenly distributed recovery and a healthier national housing market."

Analyzing data as of the end of May, Black Knight Financial Services reported another gain in monthly prepayment activity—an indicator of refinancing—marking the third straight month of increases. At the same time, long-term fixed mortgage rates fell to 4.19 percent, their lowest level in more than half a year. Meanwhile, Black Knight also found that seasonal purchase origination activity has risen, with approximately 897,000 originations through April.

In a letter sent to HUD, the National Association of Realtors reiterated its appreciation for the Federal Housing Administration's (FHA) efforts to provide reduced mortgage insurance premiums to first-time homebuyers but complained about the high mortgage insurance premiums and counseling fees that come along.

On Wednesday, four federal financial regulatory agencies and the Conference of State Bank Supervisors (CSBS) issued risk management guidelines for financial institutions that need to be aware of the challenges borrowers may face in paying off their home equity lines of credit after coming out of a recession.

Interthinx reported a 1 percent decline in its national Mortgage Fraud Risk Index from the fourth quarter of 2013 to the first quarter of 2014, bringing the index's value down to 100. Three of the component indices—measuring identity fraud, occupancy fraud, and employment and income fraud—came down over the quarter. The remaining component, property valuation fraud, surged up 27 percent to an index value of 128.

Macroeconomic research company Capital Economics calculated a 0.1 percent decline in total loan application volumes throughout June following a 1.8 percent uptick in May. The company's figures are based on weekly reports put out by the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA). So far this year, applications have risen in three months and fallen in the other three.

An examination of data from the U.S. Census shows millennials are gravitating more toward suburbs and smaller cities. Conversely, baby boomers are becoming more urban, according to Jed Kolko, chief economist at Trulia, who noted that the fastest growing boomer areas also tend to have relatively young populations.

Fannie Mae's book of business shrank for the sixth straight month in May as the enterprise's mortgage portfolio continued its decline. In its monthly volume summary, Fannie revealed its total book of business contracted at a compound rate of 2.4 percent in May, slightly slower than April's negative growth rate of 2.7 percent. Year-to-date, the book has seen an average annualized negative growth rate of 2.3 percent.