Lending

NEW BRIGHTON, Minn. – CU Companies on Monday said it finished 2015 with “significant growth” in its mortgage lending partnerships.

The Department of Housing and Urban Development is reducing the mortgage insurance premiums it charges on Federal Housing Administration multifamily loans to encourage the renovation of affordable housing units and promote energy-efficient upgrades.

If you're like a lot of credit union and bank executives out there, you're probably not so sure—and even the financial regulators don't all agree on how it should be done.

In one corner, the major CU trade groups and the Community Home Lenders Association, who are hoping the administration will further cut premiums after a reduction a year ago. On the other are MBA and ICBA, which argue a cut now would be too soon.

The numbers credit unions posted for loan and membership growth last year will be tough to beat, particularly given the economic challenges that have already sent the stock market plummeting.

The agency scrapped a part of its 2014 proposal that would have required Home Loan Bank members to maintain a certain percentage of residential mortgage assets in order to keep their membership. But the agency held fast on a provision that would disqualify captive insurance firms from membership.