Tag Archives: Agents & Brokers

Interest rates for home loans climbed higher this week, just as the European Central Bank intervened to shore up the struggling economy overseas with more euro bonds and a weak jobs report quieted investors abroad. Real estate website Zillow reported that the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage ticked up to 3.38 percent, up two basis points from 3.36 last week. The benchmark home loan had fallen and hovered somewhere between 3.36 percent and 3.41 percent over the weekend. Interest rates for the 15-year fixed-rate mortgage went up to 2.75 percent.

The National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) is suing the global investment firm UBS Securities for allegedly falsely representing the level of risk associated with mortgage-backed securities the firm sold to two federal credit unions. According to NCUA officials, the defaults and losses that resulted directly contributed to the collapse of both credit unions. The suit, filed in a federal district court in Kansas, alleges 10 counts of securities laws violations by UBS at both the federal and state level.

While FHFA reported a month-to-month drop in HARP refinances, volume under the program remains high, with numbers in the first half of the year (more than 519,000 as of the end of July) already outshining all of 2011's HARP volume. Given the government's estimate that up to 4 million loans could be eligible under the program and FBR's expectation that approximately 6 million borrowers may qualify, the firm expects that originators will continue to see strong volume in the near future.

Lawmakers introduced a new bill on Monday with plans to once more revamp the Home Affordable Refinance Program for current borrowers with eligible loans with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Sens. Barbara Boxer and Robert Menendez, among others, drafted the Responsible Homeowner Refinancing Act to increase lender competition, open up refinance opportunities to all current borrowers with government-backed mortgages, and strike through appraisal costs and upfront fees on home loans. If the bill passes the House, lenders will begin to compete more often with other lenders.

The FDIC announced Friday the closure of First Commercial Bank in Bloomington, Minnesota. The bank was closed by the Minnesota Department of Commerce, which appointed the FDIC as receiver. The FDIC announced that it entered into a purchase and assumption agreement with Republic Bank & Trust Company in Louisville, Kentucky, to assume all of the deposits of First Commercial Bank. The sole branch of First Commercial Bank reopened Monday as a branch of Republic Bank & Trust Company. Republic Bank agreed to assume of all of the bank's deposits and assets.

Vericrest Financial, Inc., announced Friday the formation of a new advisory board made up of financial services veterans. The company named four individuals to the board.

Lexington Realty Trust, a national realty investment trust that owns, manages, and invests in single-tenant office, industrial, and retail properties, announced a multi-million-dollar acquisition Thursday with a transaction value of about $480 million. Lexington is acquiring Inland American Sub├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├óÔÇ×┬ós portion of Net Lease Strategic Assets Fund L.P., which was a joint venture between Inland and Lexington. Lexington has owned and managed these properties for the past several years, since prior to 2007 when it entered the venture with Inland to create Net Strategic Assets Fund.

American consumers remain cautiously optimistic of housing as home prices rise, Fannie Mae reported Monday. According to the GSE's August 2012 National Housing Survey, consumers maintain a cautious but improving view of homeownership and the housing market. The average home price change expectation is 1.6 percent, mostly consistent with July's results and down from a June high of 2.0 percent. Meanwhile, 11 percent of those surveyed say home prices will go down in the next year.

Home prices ticked up by 0.9 percent year-over-year, according to Lender Processing Services. The Florida-based analytics and technology provider revealed that prices also rose by 0.7 percent month-over-month. Home values climbed by $203,000 on average, reflecting a 0.7-percent uptick from $202,000 last year. By state, California saw home prices ratchet up by 0.7 percent, with Texas dipping by 0.1 percent. Florida, New York, and New Jersey all saw increases by 1.3 percent, 1.7 percent, and 1.2 percent, respectively.

SunTrust is taking steps to improve its position in the market. The bank has continued to grow its mortgage banking division, which earned $258 million last quarter, according to FBR Capital Markets. While this was offset by repurchase provisions, the bank has now settled short-term losses, leaving FBR with expectations of profitability ├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├àÔÇ£especially as the refi boom continues.├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├é┬Ø FBR expects SunTrust will bring in $531 million from its mortgage banking division this year and close to twice that next year.