By investing in communities the real estate finance industry has played a critical role in the American economy. The turmoil of the last couple of years in the industry has, however, threatened this critical responsibility.Read more

The Government National Mortgage Association (Ginnie Mae) has announced that it guaranteed more than $38.6 billion in mortgage-backed securities (MBS) in October. For the first 10 months of calendar 2009, Ginnie Mae provided nearly $376 billion of liquidity to the secondary market, compared to $219 billion for the first 10 months of 2008. Ginnie Mae also reported that in September, 3.48 percent of the single-family loans in Ginnie Mae-guaranteed securities were 90-days or more delinquent, down slightly from 3.70 percent in August and down from the 3.59 percent in December 2008.Read more

On Feb. 5, 1988, President Ronald Reagan signed reverse mortgage insurance legislation, and it became the task of the U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development (HUD) to create a marketable product out of the law. There were no models. So, HUD put a product-design team together. Edward J. Szymanoski, an Associate Deputy Assistant Secretary for Economic Affairs at HUD’s Office of Policy Development and Research, was a vital member of that pioneering product-development team.Read more

The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) has adopted a model sale and servicing agreement it anticipates will become the standard form for industry participants to use voluntarily for whole loan purchases and sales made with an eye toward potential securitization. The agreement was adopted by MBA's Residential Board of Governors (RESBOG) as an MBA supported best practice. Read more

The Government National Mortgage Association (Ginnie Mae) announced today that the corporation issued more than $44.73 billion in mortgage-backed securities (MBS) in August. For the first eight months of calendar year 2009, Ginnie Mae provided nearly $297 billion of liquidity to the secondary market, compared to over $162 billion for the first eight months of calendar year 2008.Read more

The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) has released a new paper outlining a proposed framework for a refined government role in the secondary mortgage market designed to ensure liquidity for mortgages without presenting unnecessary risks for the taxpayer. The paper, Recommendations for the Future Government Role in the Core Secondary Mortgage Market, is the result of work by MBA's Council on Ensuring Mortgage Liquidity, a 23-member task force representing MBA's diverse membership base.Read more