Page 63 - July-August 2018 GSE Report Flip Book

EQUIFAX’S “WATERSHED MOMENT” JJUALN. U- ARUYG. 22001188
GINNIE MAE FHA commissioner: Mortgage insurance premium cut not likely in 2018
Over the near term, FHA Commissioner Brian Montgomery said updating FHA technology infrastructure would be his primary focus. “FHA’s looking for loose change under the sofa cushions, and that manifests itself in a lot of ways,” said Montgomery. “We are in fix-it mode. “If you look at what Fannie Mae’s been able to do, in particular around Day 1 Certainty, they’re heavy on data-centric architecture. The CEO there has been visionary and hired a good team. They’ve been able to do a lot of amazing things.”
While it’s probably “too early to commit to anything,” Montgomery added, it’s unlikely that the
FHA will reduce its mortgage insurance premiums this year. “I would say that if you looked at the [2017] actuarial report, the most recent report, had that premium cut gone through, it would have decidedly put us below the 2% ratio,” he said. “So that sort of presages this year. You probably know your answer. I mean, anything’s on the table, but I don’t know that that’s the direction we’re going to head this go-round.” In addition, Montgomery is focused on filling the agency’s vacancies over the near term. “We have a great core here and we just need to expand on that.”
Another important priority at FHA is improving minority homeownership rates, according
to Montgomery. “The minority ownership numbers have dropped, in particular for African- Americans,” he said. “Too many minority families are missing out on the benefits of wealth-building and wealth accumulation that homeownership brings over the long term. ...[While] 33% of first- time homebuyers who opt for FHA loans are minorities, and we plan to expand that number moving forward.”(The MReport, David Wharton, 07/10/18; HousingWire, Ben Lane, 07/10/18)
FHA delinquencies dropped slightly in July
Approximately 11.5% of FHA single-family mortgages were in some stage of delinquency in July, a 26 basis point decline from June, according to an Inside FHA/VA Lending analysis. The 4.8%
of FHA mortgages that were 30-59 days past due, while 1.6% of FHA loans were 60-89 days delinquent and 4.0% were seriously delinquent loans (90+ days delinquent) in July. The overall delinquency rate for all serviced FHA loans fell 31 bps year-over-year. The foreclosure rate in July: 1.1 percent. (Inside Mortgage Finance, George Brooks, 08/31/18)
© 2018 by Canfield Press, LLC. All rights reserved. www.canfieldpress.com 64