Mortgages

If a $6.3 billion subsidy only generates a $304 million return in terms of housing and community development support, is that money well spent?

While rising rates buoy revenue for the country's largest banks, in the short term they also force them to write down the value of assets they hold on their balance sheet, exacerbating a capital squeeze that's prompted most of them to halt buybacks.

JPMorgan Chase's asset-management arm entered into a deal to acquire more than $1 billion of single-family rentals, a sign that choppy markets haven't scared investors away from suburban housing.

The gain of 3 percentage points in 2022 reinforced industry calls for the agency's mortgage insurance premium to be slashed when the current fiscal year federal budgeting process is completed.

Choices of which homes are used for comparisons play a major role in disparate home valuations for Black and white homeowners, according to studies recently released by the National Community Reinvestment Coalition and academic researchers.

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen called October's positive inflation report in the U.S. "a good reading," but cautioned against relying too much on one data point.

Bank regulators are considering a measure that would rewrite the rules implementing the Community Reinvestment Act. They should consider taking their existing rules seriously.

It came as a surprise to many housing experts that Asian, Black and Hispanic homeownership rates all jumped last year by more than 2 percentage points, according to quarterly Census Bureau data.

The acquisition, which was originally expected to close at the end of last year, ultimately took more than 18 months to receive regulatory approval. It is now expected to close on Dec. 1.

Delinquencies are on the rise for FHA-backed loans, with nearly 10% of low-credit borrowers in early payment default. Economists and policy experts say this could signal trouble ahead for other credit products.

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency has approved New York Community Bancorp's proposed acquisition of Flagstar Bancorp, the companies announced Friday. The banks are extending the deal deadline to Dec. 31 as they continue to seek the green light from the Federal Reserve.

The Fed's interest rate hikes are meant to tame inflation, but the secondary impacts on housing could give the central bank a reason to pump the brakes.

The agency expects one in five borrowers to be eligible for the new pricing benefits.

The mortgage market is reeling from the central bank's strategy of raising rates and reducing its holdings of mortgage-backed securities. Lenders face the worst headwinds in more than a decade.

Credit Suisse Group agreed to pay $495 million to settle the largest remaining case related to its role in selling residential mortgage-backed securities in the U.S. that contributed to the 2008 financial crisis.

Loan officers say that the platform discourages them from originating loans.