Mortgages

Lenders are still holding on to scores of delinquent mortgages that date to the real estate crash, but a surge in home values across the country is motivating them to move the most troublesome loans off their books more quickly.

The Mortgage Bankers Association increased its 2016 industry originations forecast to $1.48 trillion from its January projection of $1.38 trillion to reflect market turmoil that has held interest rates down.

Freddie Mac on Thursday reported strong fourth quarter and year-end profits driven by a surge in demand for both home purchase and apartment loans.

Troubled loans no longer overwhelm the market, but there could be smaller outbreaks that servicers must be ready to deal with, a real estate services vendor says.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency is launching a 10-day social media campaign, #HARPNow, to alert struggling homeowners in 10 states that they can still refinance via the program before it expires at year-end.

The mismatch between demand for new homes and the supply threatens to drive up prices and dampen lending.

Home equity portfolios have shrunk at banks, but credit unions and nonbank lenders like loanDepot helped fuel the surge in home equity lines last year.

Low borrowing costs and rising home values are just two of several reasons owning a home is far less burdensome than it was a decade ago.

Fannie and Freddie have been selling pools of delinquent mortgages at auction to the highest bidders. Community groups say the Federal Housing Finance Agency should be giving preferential treatment to nonprofits and community development financial institutions.

Flagstar Bancorp in Troy, Mich., has launched a national homebuilder lending platform.

The Federal Housing Administration will continue to charge borrowers an annual premium over the entire life of the loan, rejecting calls from some housing advocates to change how it’s calculated.

The Detroit company is plowing ahead with its growth strategy at a time when some shareholders are agitating over its sagging share price.

Fifth Third Bancorp in Cincinnati said Thursday that it will spend $27.5 billion over the next five years to provide loans and other financial services to underserved communities in its region.

In an interview, Comptroller Thomas Curry expressed concern about eroding loan standards and the potential for crippling cyberattacks. But he also argued that the industry is much stronger than it was a decade ago.

Bank of Botetourt in Buchanan, Va., founded in 1899, said Thursday it has opened a mortgage division to pursue unmet demand for home loans in southwestern Virginia.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency's decision to exclude captive insurance companies from Federal Home Loan Bank membership makes the FHLB system like a private country club.

Morgan Stanley agreed to pay $3.2 billion to end a joint federal-state investigation into its handling of mortgage-backed securities, the fourth deal to be struck in a probe of the big U.S. banks' role in the subprime mortgage meltdown and the financial crisis it spawned.

Strong demand for rentals will keep pace with new construction over the next few years, the government-sponsored enterprise says.

The proposal is unlikely to pass, but does shed light on the administration's plans for housing finance reform, how it views cybersecurity progress and a proposed tax on bank liabilities that could become a reality if a Democrat takes the White House in November.

Many institutional investors are refusing to purchase mortgages loans until they get assurance from the CFPB that they won't have to pay for others' mistakes. Their pullback could further the slow the issuance of private-label mortgage bonds this year, a huge concern at a time when the majority of home loans are insured by Fannie, Freddie and the FHA.