Fannie Mae issued $42.7 billion in mortgage-backed securities last month, up 6.4% from June and the highest level of MBS issuance since February for the government-sponsored enterprise.
Fannie's report contrasted with Freddie Mac's monthly numbers (see related
Freddie Mac reported a slight decline in its purchases of refinanced loans in July. Fannie does not break out purchases of refinanced loans in its monthly reports, but the timing of its numbers relative to the Mortgage Bankers Association's refi application numbers suggested that the recent surge in the latter has not yet lifted Fannie's MBS issuance.
Fannie's monthly report showed MBS issuance slowly rising from May. But the recent surge in refinancing applications did not really start until late June.
By the end of July, refinancing applications hit a 13-month high, according to the MBA. The refinancing applications that are approved will probably show up in MBS issuance numbers for August and September.
Fannie also reported that the serious delinquency rate on its guaranteed single-family mortgages fell below 5% for the first time since October 2009.
The GSE said 4.99% of its loans were 90 days or more past due in June, down 16 basis points from the month before. It was the fourth consecutive monthly decline in the delinquency rate. (Fannie has a one-month delay in reporting delinquency rates.)
