Deals, trends and research in structured finance and asset-backed securities for the week of March 5-11

The Federal Housing Finance Agency is preparing to retire certain loan underwriting flexibilities after extending them one additional month to April 30.

Unify Financial is sponsoring a $300M securitization of prime auto loans. The $3.3 billion-asset institution is only the second CU to sell securities backed by auto loans since the NCUA gave the green light for credit-union securitizations nearly four years ago.

The government-sponsored enterprise announced Wednesday it will change eligibility criteria for vacation homes and investor properties starting April 1 to fulfill a directive by former Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin.

In its final days, the Trump administration imposed limits on Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac’s holdings of mortgages with loan-to-value ratios above 90% and certain other characteristics. Critics say the changes were unnecessary and disproportionately penalize borrowers of color.

The agency's new leadership, which has already unwound numerous actions from the prior administration, said the January 2020 guidance implementing criteria for punishing firms that mistreat customers was “inconsistent with the bureau’s duty to enforce Congress’s standard.”

Navient Private Education Refi Loan Trust 2021-B has an average balance of $59,226 per account. The previous four Navient securitizations of refinanced private loans had average balances between $73,498 and $79,306.

After a booming 2020, more mortgage lenders than ever before expect diminishing margins in the coming months as climbing interest rates set up heightened competition.

Through the Stack Infrastructure Issuer LLC (Series 2021-1), the Denver-based operator will issue $400 million in Class A-2 notes with preliminary A- ratings from S&P Global Ratings.

Worried initially that marketplace lenders might falter at the first stage of a crisis, the sector has weathered the COVID-19 storm and now projects to match 2019's record securitization deal volume.

The nomination of Gary Gensler as chairman of Securities and Exchange Commission will now be voted on by the full Senate, but Rohit Chopra's nomination to head the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau remains held up in the Senate Banking Committee.

Almost 54% of the leases issued through Santander Consumer's Chrysler Capital unit are for terms beyond 36 months, the highest-ever share of extended-term contracts.