Morning Report – What to watch for in economics this week 6/24/13

Posted on June 24, 2013 by Brent Nyitray

Vital Statistics:

  Last Change Percent
S&P Futures  1568.5 -15.6 -0.98%
Eurostoxx Index 2502.6 -46.9 -1.84%
Oil (WTI) 93.38 -0.3 -0.33%
LIBOR 0.277 0.004 1.47%
US Dollar Index (DXY) 82.8 0.483 0.59%
10 Year Govt Bond Yield 2.64% 0.11%  
Current Coupon Ginnie Mae TBA 99.5 -1.6  
Current Coupon Fannie Mae TBA 99.38 -1.1  
RPX Composite Real Estate Index 205 0.2  
BankRate 30 Year Fixed Rate Mortgage 4.36    

 

A sea of red to greet investors this morning. The SPUs are down 15, and the the 10 year is down close to a point. MBS are down as well, with the FNCL 3.5s below par. We should be best-exing into a 4% security at this point, and are well on our way to hitting 4.5s.
 
The back up in yields is not only a US phenomenon. The UK gilt and the Canadian 10 year have been moving almost in lockstep with the US 10 year. Japanese and German yields are up small, but not as much as us. For those keeping score at home, the 10 year yield increased 40 basis points last week. 
 
Economically, we have a lot of stuff coming up this week, although not much is market moving. The big question is whether the back up in interest rates is affecting the economy.Watch the consumer confidence numbers (Conference Board on Wed, Michigan on Friday) to see if the jump in interest rates is affecting people’s perception of their own financial situation. Pending Home Sales on Thursday is another one – that should affect contract signings over the past month and will give a clue as to whether the hike in rates is affecting the purchase market. On Thursday, we also get personal income and personal spending. 
 
Bond mutual funds and ETFs had record withdrawals in June, according to Trim Tabs. So far, over $47 billion has exited bond funds. This withdrawal exceeds the record set in October 2008 at the height of the financial crisis. Where that money goes is the $100,000 question. 
 
The Chicago Fed National Activity Index improved somewhat in May, although it is still negative and the the 3 month moving average is getting dangerously close to recession territory.

 

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Sunday Funnies and Open Thread

Posted on June 23, 2013 by lmsinca

I’m not going to say “I told you so” but I did have the feeling this was going to happen somewhere.  I just don’t think all civic responsibilities lend themselves that well to private enterprise.

It would be interesting to uncover what is happening in other states.  Maybe it’s going better than in these three.

Because the private sector can do everything better, more efficiently, and therefore more cheaply than government, many states have outsourced their prisons to private prison companies to generate cash, and to save money in their budgets. However, three states have now dumped the largest private prison company in the U.S., due to numerous, serious issues. According to ThinkProgress, Idaho cut ties with Corrections Corporation of America (CCA), while Texas closed two CCA prisons of its own, and Mississippi ended their relationship with CCA as well. All of this happened within the last month. The problems these states were seeing ranged from inhumane conditions (including the use of prison gangs, denying access to medical care, bad food and sanitation, widespread abuse by guards, and more) to financial problems, such as falsifying hours to extract more money from the government, and deliberately understaffing the prisons.

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Ralph Nader says it’s not just about privacy when we consider the NSA story, it’s about privatization of what were and maybe should still be government functions.

This is a stark example of the blurring of the line between corporate and governmental functions. Booz Allen Hamilton, the company that employed Mr. Snowden, earned over $5 billion in revenues in the last fiscal year, according to The Washington Post. The Carlyle Group, the majority owner of Booz Allen Hamilton, has made nearly $2 billion on its $910 million investment in “government consulting.” It is clear that “national security” is big business.

Given the value and importance of privacy to American ideals, it is disturbing how the terms “privatization” and “private sector” are deceptively used. Many Americans have been led to believe that corporations can and will do a better job handling certain vital tasks than the government can. Such is the ideology of privatization. But in practice, there is very little evidence to prove this notion. Instead, the term “privatization” has become a clever euphemism to draw attention away from a harsh truth. Public functions are being handed over to corporations in sweetheart deals while publicly owned assets such as minerals on public lands and research development breakthroughs are being given away at bargain basement prices.

These functions and assets—which belong to or are the responsibility of the taxpayers—are being used to make an increasingly small pool of top corporate executives very wealthy. And taxpayers are left footing the cleanup bill when corporate greed does not align with the public need.

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And last, I hate that Paula Deen story.  I don’t follow her cooking show or know too much about her but I have watched her a few times when my husband flips through the channels.  She always seemed like a bit of a character to me.  If what everyone’s saying is true it sounds like she made some pretty inappropriate and even racist comments and then botched the apology.  Sheesh, I grew up with people who used the “n” word which was completely cringe worthy and caused a lot of family arguments and even tears on occasion.  But, and this is a big but, there are ways and then better ways to comment or make your point.  I thought this story had a perspective we don’t see in print very often.  It’s something I think about a lot.

When the story broke, media coverage was almost tabloid-like. Not surprising, considering it was the National Enquirer that broke the story. In this day and age, when people want easily digestible bites of information rather than well-detailed and supported fact-based news, many saw the titles and nothing more. Titles such as ‘Paula Deen Admits To Using The N-Word’ and ‘Paula Deen’s Apology for Using The N-Word Is Ridiculous.’ As a result, reactions weren’t much better. As one of my colleagues said, it’s as if someone popped the lid off Ugly and let it all spill out. On Facebook, one page posted a picture of Deen with the text of the alleged comment, captioned “Racist Tw*t… Yes you are.” The ensuing comments on the post ranged from civil discussion to “racist white trash c*nt,” “C*nt fucking retard,” and “shove a stick of butter up her ass.” Really?

There were cases where people made offending remarks about her weight, about her diabetes, about being southern. People called for her to be hanged and lynched. People called her a “cracker,” a “honkey,” and other vulgar, racist words for whites. People called her a bigot, a racist, a bitch, all while calling her that most vile word you can call a woman– a c*nt. I won’t even spell it out, I find it so offensive. Since when did it become socially acceptable to skewer someone with the same type of ignorant language you are accusing them of using?

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I so want to write this kind of long(ish) sentence sometimes……haha

economic cartoon

evidence comic

women comic

Filed under: big government, comics, free markets, NSA, prisons | Tagged: | 14 Comments »

Morning Report – Dissecting the Bernank 6/21/13

Posted on June 21, 2013 by Brent Nyitray

Vital Statistics:

  Last Change Percent
S&P Futures  1590.7 6.8 0.43%
Eurostoxx Index 2595.4 9.0 0.35%
Oil (WTI) 95.37 0.2 0.24%
LIBOR 0.273 0.000 0.07%
US Dollar Index (DXY) 82.08 0.168 0.21%
10 Year Govt Bond Yield 2.39% -0.03%  
Current Coupon Ginnie Mae TBA 102.3 -0.7  
Current Coupon Fannie Mae TBA 101.8 0.3  
RPX Composite Real Estate Index 204.8 0.3  
BankRate 30 Year Fixed Rate Mortgage 4.24    

 

Markets are higher this morning after yesterday’s bloodbath. There is no economic data this morning. Bonds and MBS are up small.
 
Mortgage rates are up 30 basis points this week so far. We should be best-exing into 4% coupons soon if not already. Will the higher rates crush the purchase market? Well, the National Association of Realtors reported May Existing home sales rose 4.2% to a seasonally-adjusted 5.18% annual rate. The median home price rocketed 15.4% year-over-year. Days on market fell to 41 days from 46 days in April. During the month of May, the 10 year went from 1.67% to 2.13% and the 30 year mortgage went from 3.43% to 4.10%. So, at least on the purchase front, so far, so good. 
 
The sell-off in bonds has been dramatic. Is it overdone? IMO, not really. Two things in Bernake’s press conference jumped out at me. First, was that the Fed expects the labor market to improve slowly and for inflation to remain moderated. And if the economy acts as expected, they will start tapering QE by the end of the year and fully exit by mid 2014. In other words, the default path is to exit QE, and it will take exceptionally weak economic news to change that. I think going into the FOMC meeting, the market was discounting the possibility that the default path was to continue QE and it would take strong economic data to change that. That possibility has now been taken off the table.
 
Second, when asked about his concern over the recent increase in interest rates, Bernake said that their economic forecasts were done in the past few days, so they take into account the recent spike in rates. He went on to characterize the increase in rates as “increasing for the right reasons” – i.e. economic strength and the markets getting ahead of the Fed. 
 
The next question is “how high can rates go?” Well, if you look at historical numbers, a lot higher. Below is a chart of the 10 year yield less the Fed Funds Target Rate since we went to ZIRP. The yield curve had been a lot steeper in the past few years. 
 

 

Finally, I recently did an interview on Capital Markets Today, where I talked about the Fed, shadow inventory, mortgage rates, and the real estate market. It is a deeper dive into what the Fed had to say (it was done right after the FOMC release). Check it out.

 

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Friday Morning Open Thread

Posted on June 21, 2013 by ScottC

Brent’s away, so no morning report.

Filed under: Open Thread | 2 Comments »

Morning Report – Why household formation is still lagging 6/19/13

Posted on June 19, 2013 by Brent Nyitray

Vital Statistics:

 

Last

Change

Percent

S&P Futures 

1649.5

-2.1

-0.21%

Eurostoxx Index

2654.8

-11.8

-0.44%

Oil (WTI)

97.95

+0.2

+0.23%

LIBOR

0.273

0.000

0.00%

US Dollar Index (DXY)

80.92

-0.031

-0.04%

10 Year Govt Bond Yield

2.198%

+0.02%

  

Current Coupon Ginnie Mae TBA

104.5

-0.1

  

Current Coupon Fannie Mae TBA

103.1

-0.1

  

RPX Composite Real Estate Index

203.4

0.5

  

BankRate 30 Year Fixed Rate Mortgage

4.01

  

 

Markets are flattish as we await the FOMC decision, which should be out around 2:00 pm EST. Bonds and MBS are flat
 
Mortgage applications fell 3.3% last week, which is surprising since rates fell 9 bps. The purchase index fell 3% while the refi index fell 3.4%.
 
The CoreLogic Market Pulse has lots of good things in it this month. One article notes that prices are adjusting more quickly in this cycle as opposed to historical cycles. They also expect gains to moderate in the red-hot West Coast markets as previously underwater homeowners put their properties on the market. They also are hearing that professional investors believe some of these market to be overheated and are looking to exit. This could be good for originators as the cash buyers become a smaller percentage of buyers.
 
Wells Fargo recently held a conference call on the housing market. They see the Fed starting to move towards tapering QE towards the end of the year, but believe it will be gradual. They make an interesting point regarding the low household formation numbers – that they remain depressed because the jobs that are being created are not quality jobs. They are low paying / temporary jobs that will not really give a boost to housing demand. 
Image

Another interesting tidbit – although it seems like the refi boom is over, it turns out that half of the outstanding mortgages in the U.S. have interest rates of 5% or more.

And finally, Treasury Secretary Jack Lew has re-done his signature from OOoooooooOO to something a bit more legible. His new John Hancock will be gracing your dollar bills shortly.

Filed under: Morning Report | 5 Comments »

Morning Report – The Bernank is leaving the building 6/18/13

Posted on June 18, 2013 by Brent Nyitray

Vital Statistics:

 

 

Last

Change

Percent

S&P Futures 

1641.8

8.1

0.51%

Eurostoxx Index

2654.8

-11.8

-0.44%

Oil (WTI)

97.95

+0.2

+0.23%

LIBOR

0.273

0.000

0.00%

US Dollar Index (DXY)

80.92

-0.031

-0.04%

10 Year Govt Bond Yield

2.198%

+0.02%

 

Current Coupon Ginnie Mae TBA

104.5

-0.3

  

Current Coupon Fannie Mae TBA

103.1

-0.2

  

RPX Composite Real Estate Index

203.4

0.5

  

BankRate 30 Year Fixed Rate Mortgage

3.98.05

    

 

Markets are generally higher as we begin the two day FOMC meeting. Bonds and MBS are down small.
 
Housing starts came in at 914k, lower than the 950k expectation. May starts were revised down to 856k. Multi-fam drove the decrease, and really accounts for the volatility of the index lately. SFR construction has been steadily growing from 520k to 620k over the past year. Wet weather in the Midwest may have dampened the number a bit. Building permits came in at 975k, as expected. Overall, it shows the housing market is continuing to recover, but we are still at very depressed levels. These sort of numbers are often seen at the absolute bottom of recessions. It may be too early to jump to conclusions, but perhaps the hike in interest rates over the past six weeks is starting to bite. 
 
The housing starts number stands in contrast to the National Association of Homebuilders sentiment survey which jumped 8 points to a reading of 52, the first “net positive” number since 2006. 
 
The consumer price index came in at +.1% on the headline number, and + .2% ex food and energy. This number is still too low to please the Fed as they would like to see annual inflation in the 2% to 2.5% range. 
 
On Charlie Rose, Obama said that “Ben Bernake has stayed on as Federal Reserve Chairman longer than he wanted,” giving the clearest signal that the Bernank is going to leave when his term expires early next year. The two names mentioned have been ex Treasury Secretary Larry Summers and Vice Chair Janet Yellen. Yellen is the overwhelming favorite, and she is a bigger dove than Bernake. Something to keep in mind when you start thinking about QE tapering. That said, the current voting members on the Fed are very dovish on balance. Oh, and one other thing – she doesn’t believe the Fed’s interest rate policy has a role in bubble prevention. She would rather rely on supervision and regulation as the main line of defense against bubbles. Of course, with the stock market bubble and the real estate bubble so fresh in our minds, she will likely preside over the bursting of the Treasury bond bubble.

Filed under: Morning Report | 155 Comments »

Monday Morning

Posted on June 17, 2013 by lmsinca

Brent said the Morning Report would be spotty this week so I’ll start with an open thread and a few interesting (to me anyway) links.

This probably seems like a mistake in hindsight.

Foreign politicians and officials who took part in two G20 summit meetings in London in 2009 had their computers monitored and their phone calls intercepted on the instructions of their British government hosts, according to documents seen by the Guardian. Some delegates were tricked into using internet cafes which had been set up by British intelligence agencies to read their email traffic.

The revelation comes as Britain prepares to host another summit on Monday – for the G8 nations, all of whom attended the 2009 meetings which were the object of the systematic spying. It is likely to lead to some tension among visiting delegates who will want the prime minister to explain whether they were targets in 2009 and whether the exercise is to be repeated this week.

In addition to the piece above Snowden isn’t helping himself or us if this  is true.

Former NSA employee, and famed PRISM whistleblower, Edward Snowden is now leaking top secret documents that appear to have nothing to do with the NSA eavesdropping on Americans, and everything to do with hurting the United States’ national security position vis-a-vis Russia before a key Obama-Putin summit.

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In light of the above information it should be an interesting G8 talk Obama is scheduled to give defending our phone and internet surveillance systems.  I have to wonder what those folks will be thinking.

President Barack Obama will defend U.S. phone and internet surveillance efforts during G8 talks next week, explaining to other leaders the importance of the tools in fighting terrorism, and safeguards in place to prevent abuse of the data

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It’s nice to see a company that pays it’s employees well actually do well.  I’ve also heard that Costco employees stick around for years and years and they even have a college education program for people who want to advance within the company.

The big box giant’s profit jumped 19 percent to $459 million last quarter, thanks in part to the company’s efforts to offer discounts to lure more members, according to Bloomberg. The company was able to offer those discounts and boost its profits while paying its workers a decent wage, a claim many of Costco’s competitors can’t make.

A typical Costco worker made $45,000 in 2011, according to Fortune. That’s compared to Sam’s Club workers’ average salary of $17,486 per year, according to salary information site Glassdoor.com.

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I don’t know if any of you saw this interview with the young Air Force guy with PTSD caused by being a drone operator.  I remember thinking that the drones seemed like a good idea for modern warfare, and maybe they are.  I think they save American lives but I’m not sure we’ve gotten their use right yet.

Doesn’t it seem as though we’re not adapting very well to all the new technology and we haven’t actually thought everything through sufficiently?

This is a report on the interview from Richard Engel, but there’s also video at the link.

Bryant said that most of the time he was an operator, he and his team and his commanding officers made a concerted effort to avoid civilian casualties.

But he began to wonder who the enemy targets on the ground were, and whether they really posed a threat. He’s still not certain whether the three men in Afghanistan were really Taliban insurgents or just men with guns in a country where many people carry guns. The men were five miles from American forces arguing with each other when the first missile hit them.

“They (didn’t) seem to be in a hurry,” he recalled. “They (were) just doing their thing. … They were probably carrying rifles, but I wasn’t convinced that they were bad guys.“ But as a 21-year-old airman, said Bryant, he didn’t think he had the standing to ask questions.

He also remembers being convinced that he had seen a child scurry onto his screen during one mission just before a missile struck, despite assurances from others that the figure he’d seen was really a dog.

In 2011, as Bryant’s career as a drone operator neared its end, he said his commander presented him with what amounted to a scorecard. It showed that he had participated in missions that contributed to the deaths of 1,626 people.

“I would’ve been happy if they never even showed me the piece of paper,” he said. “I’ve seen American soldiers die, innocent people die, and insurgents die. And it’s not pretty. It’s not something that I want to have — this diploma.”

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And last but not least from the great state of CA, we passed a budget Friday that made our stingy (hahaha) Governor almost as happy as the other Democrats.  As you probably know Republicans have essentially been side lined.  It ‘s the opposite of states like WI and others where Republicans control all levels.  This piece mentions health care quite a bit and emphasizes how much Obama and others are hoping for a successful implementation here.

Drew Altman, president and chief executive of the Kaiser Family Foundation, said the success of the federal healthcare law hinges largely on the outcome in California.

“California is pace-setting, and everyone in health reform is watching very closely,” he said. “It’s hard to imagine its success until it succeeds in California.”

Many of the healthcare changes are riding on this year’s budget and a series of related bills among those lawmakers are expected to take up Saturday.

“California really couldn’t move full speed ahead” until the budget passed, said Chris Perrone, a director at the California HealthCare Foundation. “It clears the path to a lot of work that needs to happen.”

That work includes computer upgrades to process new patients and outreach efforts to ensure that more people enroll in health plans.

Healthcare was one of the final sticking points in budget negotiations this year. Brown insisted on allowing the state to scale back its coverage if federal money is reduced.

Filed under: 2013 and beyond, budget, California, civil liberties, NSA | Tagged: , | 36 Comments »

Father’s Day WEEKEND Open Thread

Posted on June 15, 2013 by lmsinca

That’s right, we celebrate the whole weekend at our house.  But then we celebrate our birthdays for at least a week (sometimes longer) and Christmas for at least two.  And since this place is heavily populated by men I would be remiss if I didn’t wish all of you Dad’s a Happy Father’s Day.

I lost my dad when I was 56 and I miss him every day.  I think I’ve mentioned before that we had a pretty rocky relationship while I was in my 20’s but we found our way back to each other  and a big part of the reason we were able to do so is because he was my best friend when I was a child.  He worked really hard and very long hours but nearly every free moment he had was spent with his girls and we loved it.  He always knew I was a little sponge and so he filled me up with values and lessons that are still a huge part of me to this day.

And luckily for me I’m also blessed with a terrific husband who could easily win a “Best Father of the Year” award.  So I appreciate fatherhood and hope y’all have a great weekend with your kids if they’re around or at least that you are acknowledged gratefully by them if you’re separated by some miles.

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And a few links for those of you who check in……………….feel free to add your own.

Income inequality in the United States—already well above that experienced in other advanced economies—has surpassed Gilded Age levels, and the Great Recession and ongoing jobs crisis will exacerbate this trend until full employment is restored. While market forces are the primary driver of rising inequality, recent economic research suggests that tax policy has contributed as well, both by exacerbating after-tax income inequality since the late 1970s and by spurring a shift of pretax income toward high-income households.

Facebook became the first to release aggregate numbers of requests, saying in a blog post that it received between 9,000 and 10,000 requests for user data in the second half of 2012, covering 18,000 to 19,000 of its users’ accounts.

Warning:  don’t read this if you’re eating, prone to sudden bouts of queasiness or unable to even think about Un Chien Andalou without simultaneously bursting into tears and dry-heaving. Believe me, I’m speaking from experience here.

And last but not least:

Comic

Filed under: comics, Father's Day, income inequality, Open Thread | 56 Comments »

Morning Report – MBS spreads 6/14/13

Posted on June 14, 2013 by Brent Nyitray

Vital Statistics:

  Last Change Percent
S&P Futures  1632.7 1.8 0.11%
Eurostoxx Index 2654.8 -11.8 -0.44%
Oil (WTI) 95.66 -0.2 -0.23%
LIBOR 0.273 0.000 0.00%
US Dollar Index (DXY) 80.92 -0.031 -0.04%
10 Year Govt Bond Yield 2.21% -0.02%  
Current Coupon Ginnie Mae TBA 101.5 0.3  
Current Coupon Fannie Mae TBA 99.8 0.7  
RPX Composite Real Estate Index 203.4 0.5  
BankRate 30 Year Fixed Rate Mortgage 4.05    

 

Markets are higher this morning after a slew of economic data that was generally negative. Bonds and MBS are up.
 
In economic data this morning, the producer price index showed inflation remains in check at the wholesale level. Industrial Production and Capacity Utilization were lower than expected. Finally, the University of Michigan Consumer Confidence number fell. Yesterday, the Bloomberg Consumer Comfort Index fell, and the driver was people’s perception of their own financial situation. Perhaps the increase in interest rates is beginning to be felt.
 
Next week will be the FOMC meeting. Market participants will undoubtedly be focusing on the debate over tapering QE. Are they comfortable with the recent spike in long-term rates? 
 
Mortgage investors are starting to rotate to non-agency paper as rates rise. It is basically a bet that the housing market continues to improve. At the margin, it should put pressure on agency paper, which will increase borrowing rates.
 
We have already seen some of the effects of mortgage REIT deleveraging in the MBS space. The spread between Ginnie I and Ginnie II securities has narrowed, as well as the spread between Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac TBAs. Fannie Mae and Ginnie I TBAs generally trade at a premium to Freddie Mac TBAs and Ginnie II TBAs respectively. Why is this happening? Mortgage REIT deleveraging. The Ginnie Is and Fannie Mae TBAs are more liquid than the IIs and Freddie Macs. And when you are deleveraging, you sell what you can, not necessarily what you want to. Punch line?  Ginnie loans and Fannie loans are getting more expensive relative to Freddie loans. 
 
The MR will be spotty next week as I will be on the Left Coast.

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Morning Report – Negative Equity Falls 6/13/13

Posted on June 13, 2013 by Brent Nyitray

Vital Statistics:

  Last Change Percent
S&P Futures  1612.3 2.4 0.15%
Eurostoxx Index 2654.8 -11.8 -0.44%
Oil (WTI) 95.66 -0.2 -0.23%
LIBOR 0.273 0.000 0.00%
US Dollar Index (DXY) 80.92 -0.031 -0.04%
10 Year Govt Bond Yield 2.21% -0.02%  
Current Coupon Ginnie Mae TBA 101.5 -0.2  
Current Coupon Fannie Mae TBA 99.8 0.0  
RPX Composite Real Estate Index 203.4 0.5  
BankRate 30 Year Fixed Rate Mortgage 4.05    

 

Markets are up on the back of a good retail sales number, in spite of an absolute shellacking (down 6.4%) in the Nikkei 225 index overnight. Initial Jobless Claims came in at 334k, a little better than expectations. The Import Price Index fell, which is bond bullish. Bonds and MBS are up small.
 
Advance Retail Sales were up .6% in the month of May, which was better than expected. Less autos and gasoline, they were up .3%, in line with expectations. April was revised downward from .5% to .2%.  Building materials are increasing at a 10% clip, which bodes well for new construction. 
 
It is probably too early for the back up in rates that started in May to start showing up in economic data, but is presence (or absence) will almost influence the Fed’s decision making on ending QE. Don’t forget The Bernank is done at the end of the year. The odds-on favorite is Janet Yellen to replace him and she is to the dovish side of Bernake. While I think it is a long shot, beware of a snap-back rally in bonds. That is when the margin clerk finishes his business.
 
CoreLogic reported that home equity increased 9% in the first quarter to reach $4.2 trillion. Negative equity fell 8% to $580 billion and the number of negative equity properties fell to 9.7 million from 10.5 million. CoreLogic estimates that if home prices increase another 5%, 1.6 million homes would regain positive equity.   This should really help drive purchase business as homeowners who have been stuck finally are able to move. Combined with a recovering job market to lure in the first time homebuyer and still generally good affordability, maybe the purchase business will make up for some of the lost refi business. Caveat: If the increase in home price appreciation continues to be driven by all-cash bidding wars in Las Vegas, then the effect will be more muted. We need to see home price appreciation in places like the Northeast and Midwest for this to really start turning things around. 
 
JP Morgan Chase is cutting 1,800 jobs in its mortgage unit, with the hits primarily coming from servicing (as delinquencies fall) and its Albion NY call center (as the refi market dries up).

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