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When the mortgage industry rolled up a record volume of $2.5 trillion last year, wholesalers were wearing the biggest smiles of all. In third quarter 2002, the top 20 wholesalers [...]

There's affordable housing. There's community reinvestment. And then there is mortgage insurance. Mortgage insurance, or MI, is often the catalyst that makes housing affordable and facilitates community reinvestment. From a [...]

As more retirees face rising costs and insufficient funds to live comfortably, the concept of home equity is changing. Today, particularly in states where property taxes are nearly doubling the [...]

The number of thrifts in the United States fell below 2,000 in the first half, to the lowest level in decades. At the same time, the number of branch offices [...]

Banks dominated the mortgage industry in 1995, and no thrift was among the top ten in originations or servicing. Adjustable-rate mortgages, the mainstay of thrifts, declined in popularity in 1995. Home Savings of America, the largest domestic thrift, fell from number 9 to number 16 in originations. The largest originator and servicing bank in 1995 was Countrywide Credit., Banks are in and thrifts are out. That was the big story in the mortgage industry last year, as indicated by American Banker's rankings of the 100 top originators and [...]

The nation's commercial banks backed away from collateralized mortgage obligations last year, trimming their holdings by $11.6 billion, or about 8%, as of the end of September. However, their holdings [...]

Large banks increased their holdings of mortgage loans by 18% during the fiscal year ending Sep 30, 1994. The top 100 banks in in the mortgage loan market increased holdings by $35 bil to $228 bil. Banks have a 25.2% share in the mortgage market. Holdings of collateralized mortgages declined 12%, while holdings of mortgage-back securities increased 8%. Mortgage investment holdings accounted for about 21% of bank assets in both FY 1993 and 1994., The biggest banks built their holdings of home loans by a stunning 18% last year as the industry rediscovered a basic business. With rising interest rates stimulating the public appetite [...]

The banking industry's holdings in mortgage-related assets grew 11% from mid-1992 to reach $769.8 billion by Sep 1993. Mortgage investments increased by 50% to account for more than 20% of total bank assets. Also, banks hold 25.2% of all outstanding home mortgage assets, compared to 16% in late 1987. While banks have generally been actively accumulating mortgage-related assets, some banks, such as Bank of America in San Francisco, CA, and Citibank have reduced their mortgage holdings., The nation's banks are looking more and more like thrifts as they boost their holdings of mortgage-related assets. As of last September, banks' portfolios of home loans, mortgage-backed securities, and [...]

Savings and loan associations have experienced a drop in assets during 1993. The assets of the 300 largest thrifts have dropped 4% compared to 1992, and the industry overall has experienced a decrease of 7%. Low interest rates are to blame for the falling assets as savings and loans tend to hang on to loans for investment. Low interest rates have increased interest margins and improved capital ratios. Tables depicting financial information on 300 savings and loan associations are provided., Even while the mortgage industry, is experiencing a boom in originations of unprecedented magnitude, the assets of the nation's thrifts continue to shrink. At midyear, assets of the 300 biggest [...]

An American Banker survey of the top 300 savings and loan associations reports that thrift assets fell by more than 6% in 1992. The top 300 savings and loan associations had their assets decrease from $817 billion in 1991 to $768 billion a year later. Thrifts benefited from large interest rate spreads on their portfolios and were able to increase their total capital by 14% during the year. Asset, capital ratio and deposit information on each one of the top 300 thrifts surveyed is included.

As the refinancing boom starts to wind down, lenders will be looking for ways to prop up waning mortgage volume. Two resources they can tap into are their relationships with [...]

Countrywide Credit Industries CEO Angelo R. Mozilo claims his mortgage bank will continue to expand in 1993. The Pasadena, CA-based bank holding company wants to increase its nationwide mortgage market from 3.8% to 6% by 1998. The mortgage bank is adding to its branch network to handle the increase in originations. Countrywide wants to add 50 retail offices and over 100 smaller satellite offices in 1993., Who cares if the mortgage refinancing boom is losing its oomph? Not Angelo R. Mozilo. He is piloting the huge Countrywide Credit Industries to another record-smashing year - and he [...]

When is an investment adviser not an investment adviser? When he publishes on the Internet, said Tokyo Joe. Wrong, said the judge. In a settlement last week, the Securities and [...]

The Bush administration has been working overtime to convince the public and lawmakers on Capitol Hill that its $1.6 trillion tax cut will help spur the flagging economy. Many economists, [...]

Randy Hecht, chairman and CEO of RS Investment Management, attended a luncheon in San Francisco for a few financial journalists from Barron's, BusinessWeek, the San Francisco Chronicle and InvestmentNews last [...]

BizRate.com, a Los Angeles company that surveys consumer activity at the point of sale, says online sales have been setting records recently. On Dec. 12, they reached $222.4 million, and [...]

The good news and the bad news for the mortgage industry is that loan originations should remain on a high plateau for at least two more years. It's good news [...]

Despite all the hype, the Internet has not yet dramatically affected the mortgage industry's profit margins. There is one area, however, where online mortgage shopping has had a dramatic effect [...]

Carolina First Bank, a thrift in Greenville, S.C., recently took in $10 million in deposits in about three weeks by ambitiously marketing its certificates over the Internet for the first [...]

A decline in mortgage origination volume has already begun, and while a shrinkage of 30 to 35% is expected for the industry in the second half, the effects on individual [...]

The debate over the coming impact of the Internet on banking and a range of other businesses is over. It is clear that the Internet means new business models, growth [...]

Work-flow software has suddenly become a hot topic in the mortgage business. Many lenders are acquiring such systems, studying them, or beginning to learn about them. The software allows lenders [...]

Technology is transforming the mortgage business in some surprising and perhaps unexpected ways. Lenders that offer pre-approvals of loans over the Internet, for example, have forced all lenders, wired or [...]

The year's first half seemed tame compared to the fireworks of a year ago. Only six mergers announced in the banking industry topped $2 billion in transaction value and only [...]

Is this the best of times or the worst of times for home equity lenders? It may be both, because some players in the industry are doing well while others [...]

FirstPlus Financial Inc., which specialized in making loans up to 125% of the value of a home, filed for bankruptcy in March, a victim of the onetwo punch of declining [...]

The use of technology in the mortgage industry has long lagged its adoption in other financial-services business. Now, however, it is showing signs of catching up. Two clues: spending on [...]

A record 1998 for the U.S. mortgage industry-$1.45 trillion of originations-meant a banner year in volume and profits for Freddie Mac and its rival, Fannie Mae. At the recent Midwinter [...]

BY EDWARD KULKOSKY The elite of the mortgage industry, assembled here last weekend for an annual gathering, heard a mixed forecast of economic conditions for the rest of the year. [...]

By EDWARD KULKOSKY While mergers like Travelers-Citigroup and NationsBank-BankAmerica were grabbing the headlines last year, several other companies were quietly making large numbers of smaller acquisitions. The leader was Memphis-based [...]

By EDWARD KULKOSKY The mortgage industry has been through many boom-and-bust cycles in the last few decades. Now it is experiencing its biggest boom ever. Will a bust follow? Most [...]

Banks have demonstrated again this year that there is no single road to success in the mutual fund business. This year's crop of masters is as diverse as they are [...]

Fiserv Orlando is offering an unusual feature to users of its mortgage servicing software: the ability to accept credit card payments. The company, a unit of Fiserv Inc., where?, has [...]

On the day Citicorp and Travelers Group announced their merger proposal in April, Wall Street celebrated by bidding up the stocks of both companies. And many others away from Wall [...]

Megabanks. The very word conjures up a futuristic world of huge, complex-and dominant-financial institutions. The emergence of the megabanks has been spurred by the rapid deregulation of financial services, by [...]

To Our Readers: What's happening in the home equity market is exemplified by two businesses: United Companies Financial and Platinum Capital. Platinum is a midsize company that is prospering in [...]

Few mortgage bankers are able to produce sustained profit, and it is this failure to generate profit that will lead to an increase in the industry's consolidation. The competitive lending environment makes it imperative that mortgage lenders become low-cost servicers and low-cost originators if they are to survive. Factors that may be contributing to mortgage bankers' problems include the need to lower profit margins to stay competitive, the success of the secondary market that has resulted in falling interest rates, and the mortgage business cycle., 'Every time we make a sale, we lose money. But we can make it up on volume.' That's an old joke. It's also a good description of what's happening in [...]

Banks have to buy financial service companies that specialize in credit cards, home mortgages and other businesses in order to expand, several analysts said. Banks face a difficult task in trying to boost revenue and earnings if they focus only on their own banking operations, Financial Institutions Consulting Pres Charles Wendel stated. Several acquisition candidates in the credit card, mortgage, auto finance and leasing businesses are discussed., Banks' eagerness for revenue and earnings growth is likely to result in more deals like the one Banc One Corp. struck this week to acquire First USA Inc. 'The single, [...]

After a false start last year, KeyCorp is pushing ahead with plans to become a national force in the booming market for home equity loans and subprime mortgages. The Cleveland-based [...]

Mortgage banks are profiting from the increase of service valuations since 1994. A strong mortgage market has increased servicing rates. In addition, large mortgage banks are content with buying servicing rights at high prices from small to medium ones because of their low servicing costs. Servicing costs have also increased because buyers are using new gauges for calculating investment values, basing them on return on assets rather than on internal returns., North American Mortgage Co. says it has been selling servicing on some of its new loans for as much as 180 basis points. To anybody who cut their teeth in [...]

Niche markets such as subprime lending and home equity loans can attract customers but may not always yield profit, especially as interest rates drop. For example, customers rarely spend more than a portion of their home equity loans. Further, this market is crowded with competitors and lenders' efforts to cross sell products are not generally successful. Additional analysis of niche markets is provided by four industry experts., Mortgage volume has been relatively slack over the last two years. As a result, lenders have tried to supplement volume in various ways - reviving old products, adding some new [...]

Lenders are trying to boost mortgage volume by marketing innovative products such as reverse mortgages, subprime lending, and 125% loan-to-value models. In addition, lenders are targeting consumers who may not realize that they could qualify for a home loan. Lenders are also exploring the Internet as a medium for consumers to initiate mortgage originations., In 1993, the home-loan industry generated more than $1 trillion of mortgages. In 1994, the figure was down to $775 billion, and last year volume was an anemic $690 billion. [...]

The mortgage industry is expanding its use of automated processing through computers, electronic networks and underwriting software. Mortgage banks, investors and the secondary markets view automation as a means to reduce costs, improve efficient data capturing and control risks. Mortgage brokers can use computers to focus more time on selling and customer service and less time on paperwork. However, technology may displace workers., The mortgage business is, on the surface, a people business. Yet mortgages are also a commodity business, and the industry is increasingly driven by technology as lenders struggle with newly [...]

The assets of the Federal National Mortgage Assn (Fannie Mae) rose 132% in the last five years, since James A. Johnson's appointment as chairman in 1990. Johnson plans to raise this commitment to $1 trillion by 2001 by financing home purchases by 10 million households including low-income groups and immigrants. The program has support from both political parties and all regions of the country., Jim Johnson has been the chairman of Fannie Mae for exactly five years. During that time, Fannie has become the nation's largest financial corporation, holding $317 billion in assets, up [...]

The Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae) plans to issue $1 bil in preferred stock and use the proceeds to repurchase its common stock. Fannie Mae will contributed $350 mil in stock to its charitable foundation for affordable housing, taking a writedown in the 4th qtr 1995. With the capital restructuring, Fannie Mae can sustain long-term growth of 14% to 15%, whereas analysts earlier predicted a flattening of growth around 12%., Fannie Mae is getting a lot of mileage out of a plan to restructure its capital. The plan has already drawn the highest form of praise from investors: a jump [...]

James A. Johnson, chairman of the Federal National Mortgage Assn, expressed concern about the credit quality of wholesale mortgage lending's growth. The delinquency rate on mortgage broker originations is 50% more than others. Correspondent originations, even with large down payments, also perform poorly. Leland Brendsel of the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp was also concerned about lending pressures and competition., The chairman of the Federal National Mortgage Association expressed concern this week about the rapid growth of wholesale mortgage lending and its impact on credit quality. Speaking at the convention [...]

KeyCorp has formed a new subsidiary, Key Bank USA, to handle its consumer loan business. Key Bank starts life with $20 billion in assets and is expected to grow quickly as it develops new loan opportunities, particularly home equity loans and auto loans to poor-credit-quality customers. Key Mortgage Services Corp, KeyCorp's mortgage origination, arm will fall under Key Bank's purview and will be its only branch operation., Keycorp, gearing up to become a bigger national force in consumer finance, has formed a subsidiary that will house all the lending businesses that are outside its branch system. The [...]

First Interstate Bancorp, in a bid to squeeze more business out of its customer base, is forming a joint venture with PHH Corp. to market home loans by telephone. The [...]

Two mortgage data analysts are predicting that 1995 will see a roughly 34% drop in mortgage originations to about $500 billion. This compares with Fannie Mae's forecast for an 18% decline to around $613 billion for the year. Some observers say the 34% figure is too drastic to be creditable, but the analysts, Nima Nattagh, of TRW Redi Property Data, and Douglas Bendt of Mortgage Risk Assessment, say their data is more accurate than that of the Dept of Housing and Urban Development., The mortgage market will be much weaker this year than anyone expected, possibly by $100 billion, according to an analysis by two experts on mortgage data and housing prices. Their [...]