Mortgage Banking

3 Months Ended

Mar. 31, 2015

Note 5 – Mortgage Banking

The activity in mortgage servicing rights (MSR) is detailed in the table below for the periods presented ($ in thousands):

	Three Months Ended March 31,
	2015			2014
Balance at beginning of period	$	64,358		$	67,834
Origination of servicing assets		3,126			2,315
Change in fair value:
Due to market changes		(2,368	)		(723	)
Due to runoff		(2,213	)		(1,812	)
Balance at end of period	$	62,903		$	67,614

During the first three months of 2015 and 2014, Trustmark sold $233.0 million and $184.9 million, respectively, of residential mortgage loans. Pretax gains on these sales were recorded to noninterest income in mortgage banking, net and totaled $3.7 million for the first three months of 2015 compared to $1.8 million for the first three months of 2014. Trustmark's mortgage loans serviced for others totaled $5.635 billion at March 31, 2015, compared with $5.636 billion at December 31, 2014. The table below details the mortgage loans sold and serviced for others at March 31, 2015 and December 31, 2014 ($ in thousands):

	March 31, 2015		December 31, 2014
Federal National Mortgage Association	$	3,588,326	$	3,579,987
Government National Mortgage Association		1,922,043		1,948,565
Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation		76,987		80,551
Other		47,609		27,146
Total mortage loans sold and serviced for others	$	5,634,965	$	5,636,249

Trustmark is subject to losses in its loan servicing portfolio due to loan foreclosures. Trustmark has obligations to either repurchase the outstanding principal balance of a loan or make the purchaser whole for the economic benefits of a loan if it is determined that the loan sold was in violation of representations or warranties made by Trustmark at the time of the sale, herein referred to as mortgage loan servicing putback expenses. Such representations and warranties typically include those made regarding loans that had missing or insufficient file documentation, loans that do not meet investor guidelines, loans in which the appraisal does not support the value and/or loans obtained through fraud by the borrowers or other third parties. Generally, putback requests may be made until the loan is paid in full. However, mortgage loans delivered to Federal National Mortgage Association (FNMA) and Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (FHLMC) on or after January 1, 2013 are subject to the Lending and Selling Representations and Warranties Framework updated in May 2014, which provides certain instances in which FNMA and FHLMC will not exercise their remedies, including a putback request, for breaches of certain selling representations and warranties, such as payment history and quality control review.

When a putback request is received, Trustmark evaluates the request and takes appropriate actions based on the nature of the request. Effective January 1, 2013, Trustmark was required by FNMA and FHLMC to provide a response to putback requests within 60 days of the date of receipt. Currently, putback requests primarily relate to 2009 through 2013 vintage mortgage loans. Trustmark incurred no mortgage loan servicing putback expenses during the first three months of 2015 compared to $150 thousand during the same time period in 2014, which was included in other noninterest expense.

Changes in the reserve for mortgage loan servicing putback expense for mortgage loans delivered to FNMA in periods not covered by the November 2013 Resolution Agreement between Trustmark and FNMA and to other entities were as follows for the periods presented ($ in thousands):

	Three Months Ended March 31,
	2015		2014
Balance at beginning of period	$	1,170	$	1,050
Provision for putback expenses		-		150
Losses		-		(72	)
Balance at end of period	$	1,170	$	1,128

Mortgage loans covered by Trustmark’s Resolution Agreement executed with FNMA in November 2013 are only subject to putback risk due to borrower fraud or systemic risk. Trustmark’s exposure to putback requests for loans sold to FNMA, which were originated after 2008, has improved as a result of industry-wide guidelines and process enhancements implemented since that time. Trustmark’s exposure to putback requests for loans sold to GNMA has improved as a result of declining delinquency ratios. Please refer to the “Past Due LHFS” section included in Note 3 – Loans Held for Investment (LHFI) and Allowance for Loan Losses, LHFI for additional information regarding mortgage loans sold to GNMA.

There is inherent uncertainty in reasonably estimating the requirement for reserves against potential future mortgage loan servicing putback expenses. Future putback expenses are dependent on many subjective factors, including the review procedures of the purchasers and the potential refinance activity on loans sold with servicing released and the subsequent consequences under the representations and warranties. Trustmark believes that it has appropriately reserved for potential mortgage loan servicing putback requests.

- Definition

The entire disclosure for a transferor's continuing involvement in financial assets that it has transferred in a securitization or asset-backed financing arrangement, the nature of any restrictions on assets reported by an entity in its statement of financial position that relate to a transferred financial asset (including the carrying amounts of such assets), how servicing assets and servicing liabilities are reported, and (for securitization or asset-backed financing arrangements accounted for as sales) when a transferor has continuing involvement with the transferred financial assets and transfers of financial assets accounted for as secured borrowings, how the transfer of financial assets affects an entity's financial position, financial performance, and cash flows.

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