Today’s News Synopsis:
According to Freddie Mac, the 30-year fixed mortgage rate fell to 5.06 percent this week. 2.8 million properties received a foreclosure notice in 2009. Interactive Mortgage Advisors is selling $130 billion worth of Ginnie Mae’s servicing portfolio. President Obama is proposing a tax on all companies who received bailout money, which would last until all bailout money is paid back.
In The News:
Chicago Tribune – “Rates on 30-year mortgages drop to 5.06 pct, second straight weekly decline” (1-14-10)
“Rates for 30-year home loans edged lower for the second straight week, a report said Thursday, but remained above last month’s record lows. The average rate on a 30-year fixed mortgage was 5.06 percent this week, down from 5.09 percent a week earlier, mortgage company Freddie Mac said.”
Housing Wire – “Foreclosure Filings Hit New Record in 2009: RealtyTrac” (1-14-10)
“In 2009, a record 2.8 million properties received a foreclosure filing, a 21% jump from 2008 and a 120% increase from 2007, according to online marketplace RealtyTrac, which reported the numbers Thursday.”
Housing Wire – “Barack Wants ‘Responsibility Fee’ to Get Bank Bailout Funds Back” (1-14-10)
“President Barack Obama is proposing a ‘Financial Crisis Responsibility Fee’ to tax large financial institutions that received government funds through the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP). The news comes in the midst of reports that the government may earn billions of dollars on bailouts. The proposed fee would last for at least 10 years, until all taxpayer dollars are repaid. The fee would apply to the debt of financial institutions with more than $50bn of consolidated assets.”
Housing Wire – “Congressman Proposes 50% Tax on Wall Street Bonuses” (1-14-10)
“Rep. Peter Welch (D-VT) introduced legislation this week to levy new taxes on yearly employee bonuses at financial institutions receiving assistance from the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP). Under the bill, bonuses above $50,000 in either cash or stock would be taxed at a rate of 50%.”
Housing Wire – “BofA Permanent HAMP Modifications Jump from 98 to 3,200 in December” (1-14-10)
“The Bank of America (BAC: 16.82 +1.20%) book of permanent loan modifications under the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP) grew from 98 mortgages by the end of November 2009 to 3,200 by January 2010, according a company announcement. In the US Treasury Department’s November progress report, BofA completed 98 permanent modifications from the program’s launch in March 2009 through November. Since then, nearly 3,200 borrowers received a completed HAMP modification, and another 12,000 of the BofA borrowers sent their finally modified loan documents under HAMP to be signed and returned by BofA.”
Housing Wire – “Height-of-Boom Subprime Performance Keeps Getting Worse: Moody’s” (1-14-10)
“The basket of mortgage backed securities that the credit rating agency reviewed for its report deal with loans originated during the recent boom years in housing finance. Moody’s is now projecting cumulative losses of 18.7% for 2005 vintage securitizations, 38.4% for 2006 RMBS and 48.1% for 2007 RMBS.”
Housing Wire – “IMA to Sell $130m Ginnie Mae Servicing Portfolio” (1-14-10)
“Interactive Mortgage Advisors (IMA) is facilitating the sale of a $130m Ginnie Mae bulk servicing portfolio on behalf of an undisclosed seller, an independent mortgage banker, according to an offering obtained by HousingWire. The offering covers 937 loans with a combined principal balance of more than $130m. The loans bear a weighted average interest rate of 6.17% and a weighted average service fee of 0.53%.”
Bloomberg – “Issa Proposes Inspector General for Fannie, Freddie Agency” (1-14-10)
“The companies’ regulator, the Federal Housing Finance Agency, has been without an inspector general for at least 17 months since the Federal Housing Finance Board that oversaw the 12 regional Federal Home Loan Banks was merged with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac’s former overseer to create FHFA. The companies in that time have been taken over by FHFA and given access to what is now an unlimited amount of emergency Treasury Department funding.”
Bloomberg – “Lehman Wins Court Approval to Spend $1.4 Billion to Buy Loans” (1-14-10)
“Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc., the investment bank liquidating in bankruptcy, won a U.S. judge’s approval to spend $1.4 billion to buy loans and mortgages from an insolvent German affiliate, Lehman Brothers Bankhaus.”
Looking Back:
One year ago, the NAR estimated that a homebuyer tax credit could result in 555,000 home sales. Barclay’s Capital claimed that allowing judges to reduce the principal amount on mortgages would not reduce foreclosures. Fannie Mae created a policy allowing people leasing a property to continue occupying their property for a short time after the foreclosure process. PMI Mortgage Insurance estimated that home prices would continue to fall until the 3rd quarter of 2009.
California Real Estate Investing News is a post from: The Norris Group