Genworth Mortgage Insurance Unit Announces Price Reductions and Expanded Credit Guidelines to Help Lenders Serve More Home Buyers

Published on Monday, 07 May 2012 08:41 Written by TradersHuddle Staff

Reduced Pricing and Expanded Credit Guidelines Will Take Effect May 14

RICHMOND, Va., May 7, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- The U.S. Mortgage Insurance (USMI) unit of Genworth Financial, Inc. (NYSE: GNW) today announced a range of price and underwriting guideline adjustments that will reduce the cost of insurance for most mortgage loans lenders offer to their customers. These adjustments include reduced pricing and expanded underwriting guidelines that will allow more borrowers to qualify for conventional mortgage loans with affordable down payments of less than 20 percent of a home's purchase price. The guideline and pricing changes will take effect May 14. 

The changes reduce monthly premium rates for borrower and lender-paid insurance on all mortgages with loan-to-value ratios of 95 percent or less, and all mortgage loans to borrowers with Fair Isaac Corporation (FICO) credit scores less than 760 will be eligible for new, reduced mortgage insurance rates. Genworth also is introducing new, lower rates for mortgage lenders on monthly and single premium payment plans for borrowers with FICO credit scores of 760 and higher. There is no change in premiums for insurance on mortgages with loan-to-value ratios greater than 95 percent.

Under its expanded guidelines, Genworth now will accept a minimum FICO credit score of 700 for loans with debt-to-income levels of 41 percent to 45 percent, eliminate guideline distinctions for retail and third party lender originations, and broaden cash-out refinancing eligibility for condominiums. Genworth also will provide insurance coverage for mortgages that meet the guidelines for evaluation of consumer credit trade lines and financial reserves from the widely used automated underwriting systems offered by the Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae) and Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (Freddie Mac). As a result of the changes, Genworth will approve a wider range of loans that receive acceptable eligibility messages from these automated underwriting systems.

"These pricing and guideline adjustments will make it easier for our lender partners to offer affordable mortgage insurance coverage to more borrowers and position USMI to compete in our targeted market segments, while maintaining a disciplined risk management approach that ensures we still can provide a close review of factors that really drive risk," said Rohit Gupta, president and CEO of USMI. "We will continue to provide lenders with other valuable assistance – including fast underwriting decisions, our Action Center® live customer service, hands-on training, and business-critical market insights – to help them serve more home buyers."

For more information on Genworth's latest mortgage insurance rates and guidelines, go to:  www.mortgageinsurance.genworth.com.

About Genworth Financial

Genworth Financial, Inc. (NYSE: GNW) is a leading Fortune 500 insurance holding company dedicated to helping people secure their financial lives, families and futures.  Genworth has leadership positions in offerings that assist consumers in protecting themselves, investing for the future and planning for retirement -- including life insurance, long term care insurance, financial protection coverages, and independent advisor-based wealth management -- and mortgage insurance that helps consumers achieve home ownership while assisting lenders in managing their risk and capital.

Genworth has approximately 6,400 employees and operates through three divisions: Insurance and Wealth Management, which includes U.S. Life Insurance, Wealth Management and International Protection segments; Global Mortgage Insurance, which includes U.S. and International Mortgage Insurance segments; and the Corporate and Runoff division. Its products and services are offered through financial intermediaries, advisors, independent distributors and sales specialists. Genworth Financial, Inc., which traces its roots back to 1871, became a public company in 2004 and is headquartered in Richmond, Virginia. For more information, visit genworth.com. From time to time, Genworth Financial, Inc. releases important information via postings on its corporate website. Accordingly, investors and other interested parties are encouraged to enroll to receive automatic email alerts and Really Simple Syndication (RSS) feeds regarding new postings. Enrollment information is found under the "Investors" section of genworth.com

SOURCE Genworth Financial, Inc.