RMBS

  • Assured wraps targeted

    Moody's has downgraded the ratings of 225 classes of US structured finance securities wrapped by Assured Guaranty Municipal Corp (AGM), Assured Guaranty Corp (AGC) and their affiliated insurance operating companies. The affected securities include certain RMBS, ABS, structured notes and Trups CDOs.

    The action is solely driven by the agency's downgrade of the insurer's insurance financial strength (IFS) ratings (SCI .......

    News Round-up 21 January 2013

  • TBA liquidity underlined

    The presence of the to-be-announced (TBA) market provides greater liquidity to agency MBS, according to a recent New York Fed study. Authors James Vickery and Joshua Wright document in their report the market's robust liquidity, even during the financial crisis.

    The authors also present preliminary evidence that the liquidity of the TBA market raises MBS prices and lowers mortgage interest .......

    News Round-up 21 January 2013

  • 'Higher-priced' mortgage appraisal rules set

    The US Fed, CFPB, FDIC, FHFA, NCUA and OCC have released the final rule that establishes new appraisal requirements for 'higher-priced mortgage loans' under Dodd-Frank. Mortgage loans are higher-priced if they are secured by a consumer's home and have interest rates above certain thresholds.

    For higher-priced mortgage loans, the rule requires creditors to use a licensed or certified appraiser that .......

    News Round-up 21 January 2013

  • Volume of aged loans in foreclosure falls

    The number of aged loans in foreclosure fell for most servicers of US RMBS in 3Q12. This is a promising trend for servicers, according to Moody's, and indicates that servicers are finally putting behind them the operational and regulatory issues that plagued them in the past and are taking the steps necessary to address their backlogged foreclosure inventory.

    However, foreclosure .......

    News Round-up 21 January 2013

  • Clarity on downpayments required

    Fitch says that the recent qualified mortgage (QM) announcement (SCI 11 January) is a positive step toward finalising risk retention and premium capture rules for securitisers of residential mortgages. Given that the QRM definition for exemption from these rules is linked to that of the QM, the back-end debt-to-income (DTI) requirement for a QRM is now clear. However, a key .......

    News Round-up 18 January 2013

  • Assured IFS ratings hit

    Moody's has downgraded the insurance financial strength (IFS) rating of: Assured Guaranty Municipal Corp (AGM) to A2 from Aa3; Assured Guaranty Corp (AGC) to A3, from Aa3; and Assured Guaranty Re (AGRe) to Baa1 from A1. At the same time, the agency downgraded the senior unsecured debt ratings of both Assured Guaranty US Holdings and Assured Guaranty Municipal Holdings to .......

    News Round-up 18 January 2013

  • 'No major suprises' in servicing rules

    The CFPB has issued its final mortgage servicing rules, which the majority of servicers must adhere to by 10 January 2014. The final rules are based on the servicing standards set by last year's national servicer settlement and the OCC consent order issued in April 2011 (SCI passim).

    New protections under the rules for struggling borrowers include: restricted dual-tracking; notification .......

    News Round-up 18 January 2013

  • Euro SF volume tough to call

    European structured finance volume for 2013 remains difficult to call. For example, while S&P expects overall investor-placed issuance to fall over the year, Fitch forecasts a rise of 5%.

    Fitch predicts that public and retained European structured finance issuance this year will be broadly unchanged from 2012, at about €200bn. Of this figure, 40% is expected to be placed with .......

    News Round-up 16 January 2013

  • Subprime spike for RMBS

    While the US ABS and CMBS secondary markets are in hiatus, RMBS supply actually rose yesterday, thanks to a spike in subprime bid-lists. Interactive Data figures put non-agency BWIC volume at US$885m for the session.

    The subprime space was characterised by a positive tone, with a mix of various vintage senior and mezz paper out for bid. Dealer offerings were .......

    Market Reports 16 January 2013

  • AIG files ML2 suit

    AIG and some of its affiliates last week filed a complaint in New York State Supreme Court seeking a declaration from the court as to the proper interpretation of a contract it entered into with Maiden Lane II. AIG sold in December 2008 approximately US$20bn in RMBS tranches that it had purchased between 2005 and 2007 to Maiden Lane II, .......

    News Round-up 16 January 2013

  • Value seen in MBIA-wrapped bonds

    Absent a payout from Bank of America on alleged rep and warranty breaches or an increase in intercompany support facilities, it is unclear how MBIA will continue to pay claims on its structured finance exposures, suggest RMBS analysts at Barclays Capital. Indeed, the insurer's recent consent solicitation (SCI 28 November 2012) indicates that it might be preparing for a restructuring .......

    News 15 January 2013

  • Loan-level data disclosed

    Fannie Mae has begun releasing monthly loan-level disclosure data for its single-family MBS as part of its loan-level disclosures initiative. The data will be updated monthly and will be provided for MBS beginning with an issue date of 1 April 2003.

    "We believe that releasing monthly loan-level data is a significant step toward meeting investors' desires for enhanced transparency," comments .......

    News Round-up 15 January 2013

  • Mixed outlook for Japanese SF performance

    Moody's believes that strict underwriting standards in Japan will support the performance of RMBS and ABS receivables in the jurisdiction during 2013. The weak real estate market is expected to have a negative effect on CMBS transactions, however.

    Overall performance of RMBS collateral in new and existing deals will remain stable this year, according to the agency, due to the .......

    News Round-up 15 January 2013

  • Settlement prompts servicer refocus

    Fitch believes the settlement between regulators and 10 residential loan servicing companies (SCI 9 January) is positive for those companies, as it marks an end to the foreclosure review proceedings and will allow them to refocus on the services they provide. The settlement includes the payment of US$8.5bn, either as cash payments or assistance to help borrowers, and effectively ends .......

    News Round-up 15 January 2013

  • Bullish outlook for EM securitisation

    S&P says it is bullish on structured finance in emerging markets going into 2013, though it warns that each country's unique situation warrants careful scrutiny. A rebounding Mexican economy and Brazil's uncertain regulatory environment is expected to anchor Latin American activity, while the focus in EEMEA will be split between Russian and South African domestic activity and cross-border issuance in .......

    News Round-up 14 January 2013

  • Mortgage rule, QM definitions released

    The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has adopted a new rule to protect buyers from irresponsible mortgage lending. Clarification as to what will constitute a qualified mortgage (QM) has also been provided.

    The latest iteration of the rule requires lenders to ensure prospective buyers have the ability to repay their mortgage and protects borrowers from 'no doc' and interest-only lending .......

    News 11 January 2013

  • Most FHFA claims to proceed

    A New York federal judge has denied a motion to reconsider a decision which allowed the FHFA to proceed with a number of fraud claims against Ally Financial and other banks in connection with losses suffered by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. However, a few claims based on owner-occupancy and LTV ratios were dismissed.

    The court also dismissed certain claims .......

    Job Swaps 11 January 2013

  • RMBS BWIC volume gains ground

    US RMBS secondary supply continues to climb. Agency volume rose sharply yesterday, while non-agency - although down on the previous session - was considerably higher than earlier in the year, at US$799m.

    US$17m of the Alt-A fixed rate tranche RAST 2006-A10 A7 was talked at around 80 yesterday, according to SCI's PriceABS data, while a US$36m slice of .......

    Market Reports 10 January 2013

  • Servicers reach foreclosure settlement

    A number of mortgage servicing companies have reached an agreement with the OCC and the Federal Reserve Board to pay more than US$8.5bn in cash payments and other assistance to help borrowers. The sum includes US$3.3bn in direct payments to borrowers and US$5.2bn in assistance, such as loan modifications.

    The mortgage servicing companies are Aurora, Bank of America, Citibank, JPMorgan, .......

    News Round-up 9 January 2013

  • Nationstar, Green Tree ratings eyed

    Fitch says it is monitoring the servicer ratings of Nationstar Mortgage and Green Tree Servicing, following Bank of America's announcement that it plans sell MSRs to the firms (SCI 8 January). Given the scale of the transactions, as well as the on-going integration of Aurora Bank's servicing assets at Nationstar and GMAC Mortgage's assets at Green Tree, the agency is .......

    News Round-up 9 January 2013

  • QRM rules awaited

    Final clarity as to what constitutes a qualified mortgage and the likelihood of increased issuance will be key developments that will shape the coming year for US RMBS, according to Fitch.

    The Consumer Finance Protection Bureau's (CFPB) is expected to release the final definitions for qualified mortgages (QM) this month. "Securitisation of QRMs exempts issuers from risk retention and premium .......

    News Round-up 9 January 2013
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