The conventional market recaptured a lot of the first-time homebuyers it lost during the financial crisis, but service members instead have increasingly stuck with loans insured by the Department of Veterans Affairs.
The private equity acquisition of fintech vendor Ellie Mae will give it some breathing room in a declining originations market being owned a more patient and strategic investor rather than shareholders as a publicly traded company.
The mortgage loan origination system developer Ellie Mae is going private, agreeing to be acquired by the private equity firm Thoma Bravo in an all-cash transaction valued at $3.7 billion.
A top official at the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions defended tougher underwriting rules blamed recently for a slump in the nation’s housing market, but left open the possibility that regulations could ease if conditions change.
Borrowers and financial institutions may be feeling the strain from reduced operations at the FHA and IRS, which has suspended the release of certain income documentation during the budget impasse.
The Federal Housing Finance Agency has proposed barring Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac from using credit scores developed by VantageScore over concern about conflicts of interest with the joint venture of Equifax, Experian and TransUnion.
When the mortgage giant will be released from government control is anyone's guess, but the company's third-quarter report shows signs of an easier transition.
Despite recriminations about how the crisis and ensuing regulations have tightened loan access, an actual assessment of mortgage credit availability is more complicated.
