First Financial Group TN LLP

Treasury Auctions Done. Bonds Cautiously Resilient as Stocks Repeat History

7/29/2010 12:09 PM

Treasury just sold $29 billion 7s to a group of uninterested buyers... Auction demand as measured by the bid to cover ratio was below average. 2.78 bids were submitted for every 1 accepted by Treasury. Compare that to the ten auction average of 2.81 and the five auction average of ...Read More

Fannie Mae Preps Investors for Reform. Book of Business Reflects Tight Credit Conditions

7/29/2010 11:31 AM

Posted To: MND NewsWire

In the wake of the passage of Wall Street Reform, which many opponents have criticized Capitol Hill for failing to deal with the future of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the Obama Administration is beginning to present the broad outlines of how the future of the GSEs will be determined. In a letter re...Read More

Are HECM Regulators Acting Unethically Toward the Reverse Mortgage Program?

7/29/2010 11:06 AM

Posted To: Community Commentary

I recently spoke on two interesting panels at the American Conference Institute’s two day symposium on Reverse Mortgages. The conference was held at the famed Helmsley Park Lane Hotel in the heart of Manhattan. The conference attracted a virtual who’s w...Read More

Final Ruling Issued on SAFE Act; Underwriting Guideline Overlays, Adverse Market Fees and Steep LLPAs; CMBS Sales; California State of Emergency;

7/29/2010 8:51 AM

Posted To: Pipeline Press

On a non-mortgage note, my son asked me, "At what age is it ok to tell a highway that it is adopted? At some point the highway will realize that it doesn't look like the Kiwanis's Club." I would have told him to "keep his day job", except ...Read More

Vacancy Rate Near Historic High. America Has a "Home Problem"

7/29/2010 8:33 AM

Posted To: MND NewsWire

As we have pointed out over the last few weeks , America has a homelessness problem; over a million individuals and families are temporarily or chronically homeless. While the statistics don't fully address this aspect, there is at least anecdotal indication that some of these people are in she...Read More

The Day Ahead: Moody's Questions U.S. Credit Rating. Bonds Shrug Off News

7/29/2010 7:30 AM

Posted To: MBS Commentary

Equity futures are trading higher this morning despite word from Moody’s that it would have to question America’s triple-A credit rating unless it provides a credible plan to tackle its growing deficit. Steve Hess , a top sovereign debt analyst at Moody’s, said th...Read More

Can Mortgage Rates Go Any Lower?

7/28/2010 3:16 PM

Posted To: Mortgage Rate Watch

Well, here we are on "hump day" and mortgage rates are still detached from the price fluctuations of the secondary mortgage market. Instead, the ups and downs of consumer borrowing costs continue to be driven primarily by the capacity constraints of major lenders, the mar...Read More

Is There Life After the Mortgage Business?

7/28/2010 2:33 PM

Posted To: The Garrett Watts Report

We all know the mortgage business can be extremely profitable at times. We also know it can be disastrous at other times. Regulators and law makers have created an environment that makes us feel like a pin ball, bouncing aimlessly from one bumper to another Regardless of all th...Read More

FHA Ready to Reduce Seller Concessions. HUD Invites Industry Comment Before Implementation

7/28/2010 2:18 PM

Posted To: MND NewsWire

HUD is preparing to implement a few new policies that will no doubt affect your pipeline/loan application process. Last week, HUD and the FHA invited public comment on three of those policy changes, which are part of FHA's strategy to "strengthen their capital reserves". The proposed ...Read More

Beige Book: Mixed Reads on Economy. Housing Market Definitely "Sluggish"

7/28/2010 1:24 PM

Posted To: MND NewsWire

The Federal Reserve has released the Beige Book The Beige Book is a compilation of anecdotal information and data on current economic conditions across the country. The findings are NOT THE VIEWS OF FEDERAL RESERVE OFFICIALS ...instead, each Federal Reserve bank interviews key business contacts, ec...Read More