TheMReport — News and strategies for the evolving mortgage marketplace.
Issue link: http://digital.themreport.com/i/105753
local edition or ig i nat ion ANALYTICS Fed Launches Interactive Tool to Track Recovery S e c on da r y M a r k e t a na ly t ic s se r v ic i ng Rolling out a new technology program, the New York Fed is targeting enhanced oversight for the Tri-State area's housing recovery. New York // The Federal Reserve Bank of New York announced the launch of a new interactive tool designed to provide data on the state of the housing recovery in New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut. The Housing Market Recovery webpage provides a series of interactive visuals to display where home prices have recovered and to what extent. The page also highlights the recovery's effect on home equity and affordability. For example, one map can be used to compare county-level median home prices in the current year with those of previous years. Another chart compares home price indices for select parts of the region relative to the national price peak in 2006. Current data on the site show significant variation across regional counties in the Tri-State area. For example, median home prices have rebounded back to peak levels in 35 percent of counties, most of which are located in upstate New York. As of September, 82 percent of counties in the region saw a rise in prices during 2012, suggesting that local markets may have hit bottom. The tool is available at the New York Fed's website. It will be updated with more information as the data becomes available. NFCU Reaches Record Volume of Loan Closings Attributing its successful numbers to "no money down" mortgage options, the credit union reported new highs for closing volume. Virginia // The Navy Federal Credit Union (NFCU) 66 | The M Report experienced record closing volume during the latter half of last year. Announcing data from October that revealed total mortgage loan closings of $1 billion for the month, NFCU reported that yearto-date, it has made more than $8.3 billion in mortgage-related funding available to consumers. "Having ample products, competitive rates, and specials mortgage success means that we've put thousands of families in new homes or placed them securely in their current ones, and, that we're doing absolutely everything we can to find the exact right mortgage or refinance option to fit our members' needs. "Making homeownership possible is a privilege," he concluded. like offering to pay up to $2,500 in closings costs are a must in matching members to mortgages that suit their budget. But by far, being able to offer a 'no money down' option is a difference maker," said Jack Gaffney, EVP of lending for NFCU. Though year-end statistics have not been released, the credit union projected more than $10 billion in mortgage loans. In an official statement, NFCU noted that one of the keys to the organization's success has been the ability to offer a 100 percent financing alternative for purchasing a home; NFCU remains one of the few lenders still providing this option to borrowers. Continuing his commentary, Gaffney added, "For us, huge Fifth Third CFO Calls for Withdrawal of Basel III Addressing Congress on the potentially damaging impact of the regulatory initiative, Fifth Third's leader emphasized the need for more research on Basel III. Ohio // In a testimony before two House subcommittees, Fifth Third Bancorp CFO Daniel Poston (speaking on behalf of the American Bankers Association) urged the withdrawal of Basel III's "standardized approach" in light of the burdens it would bring to banks and to the overall economy. Speaking before the Subcommittee on Financial Institutions & Consumer Credit and the Subcommittee on Insurance, Housing and Community Opportunity, Poston called the proposed rules "overly complex" and "not appropriate for banks of any size." In his testimony, Poston said that most banks have no problem with the capital requirements and noted that capital levels are already historically high. The problem, he said, lies in the "arbitrary—and excessive—risk weights that will hurt banks, our customers, and the U.S. economy overall." He specifically pointed to proposals that could shrink the mortgage market and further tighten credit. "Some proposals specifically target many safe and sound mortgage products and services for harsh capital treatment, driving up costs and compelling banks to reduce—or even stop—their involvement in mortgage lending," he said. "In addition, the proposals require a significant amount of very granular data on a mortgageby-mortgage basis. Most banks do not have the required data in their systems to apply this complex mortgage treatment, as the proposed risk attribution framework is novel." While federal agencies have recognized the industry's concern by delaying the implementation deadline, Poston said the extension "is not the answer to this problem." Rather, he suggested policymakers should pull away from the standardized approach and conduct empirical studies on proposed rules to ensure that they are fair to all banks. Until that time, Basel I rules should remain in place for all banks. "The industry supports a more risk-sensitive system of generally applicable rules, one that works well and applies broadly, that identifies risks where and as they are, and that treats similar risks with similar capital treatment," Poston said. "There are nearly 7,000 banks in the United States, the vast majority of which are community banks; therefore, any general risk-weights must work for these banks, or else they don't work."