Comptroller’s Handbook A-MB - Mortgage Banking - Version 1.0 - Safety and Soundness

Oct 23, 2026

Comptroller’s Handbook A-MB addresses mortgage banking within the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency’s safety-and-soundness framework, covering capital adequacy, asset quality, management, earnings, liquidity, sensitivity to market risk, and other activities. It explains mortgage market fundamentals and common structures, outlines statutory and regulatory authority, and details key risks including credit, interest rate, liquidity, price, operational, compliance, and strategic risks. The handbook provides risk management guidance, examination procedures, and appendixes on letters, hedging, accounting, structures, and handling imminent foreclosure.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages235

Reading Time9 h 52 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

Background

Primary and Secondary Mortgage Markets

Fundamentals of Mortgage Banking

Common Mortgage Banking Structures

Mortgage Banking Profitability

Statutory and Regulatory Authority

Preemption and Visitorial Powers

Capital Requirements

Risks Associated With Mortgage Banking

Risk Management

Examination Procedures

Conclusions

Appendixes

|

Comptroller’s Handbook A-MB
Safety and Soundness

Capital Adequacy
(C)
Asset Quality
(A)
Management
(M)
Earnings
(E)
Liquidity
(L)
Sensitivity to
Market Risk (S)
Other Activities
(O) | | | --- | --- | | Mortgage Banking
Version 1.0, February 2014
References to reputation risk have been removed from this booklet as of March 20, 2025. Removal of reputation risk references is identified by a strikethrough. Refer to OCC Bulletin 2025-4. | | | | Ofﬁce of the
Comptroller of the Currency
Washington, DC 20219 | | | | Contents Introduction..............................................................................................................................1 Background ................................................................................................................... 1 Primary and Secondary Mortgage Markets ............................................................ 2 Fundamentals of Mortgage Banking....................................................................... 3 Common Mortgage Banking Structures ................................................................. 4 Mortgage Banking Profitability .............................................................................. 4 Statutory and Regulatory Authority.............................................................................. 9 Preemption and Visitorial Powers .............................................................................. 10 Capital Requirements .................................................................................................. 11 Risks Associated With Mortgage Banking ................................................................. 12 Credit Risk ............................................................................................................ 12 Interest Rate Risk .................................................................................................. 13 Liquidity Risk ....................................................................................................... 13 Price Risk .............................................................................................................. 14 Operational Risk ................................................................................................... 14 Compliance Risk ................................................................................................... 16 Strategic Risk ........................................................................................................ 18 ~~Reputation Risk~~.....................................................................................................~~ 19~~ Risk Management ....................................................................................................... 20 Management and Supervision ............................................................................... 20 Internal and External Audits ................................................................................. 21 Information Technology ....................................................................................... 22 Mortgage Banking Functional Areas .................................................................... 22 Loan Production .................................................................................................... 23 Secondary Marketing ............................................................................................ 38 Servicing ............................................................................................................... 50 Mortgage Servicing Assets ................................................................................... 67 Examination Procedures .......................................................................................................75 Scope ...............................

FAQs

What topics does the handbook cover for mortgage banking safety and soundness?

It covers core areas such as capital adequacy, asset quality, management, earnings, liquidity, sensitivity to market risk, and other activities, along with mortgage banking fundamentals and structures.

Which specific risks are addressed in the mortgage banking risk section?

The handbook addresses credit risk, interest rate risk, liquidity risk, price risk, operational risk, compliance risk, and strategic risk, and includes a struck-through section for reputation risk.

How are examination procedures organized in the handbook?

Examination procedures are presented with defined scope and then cover management and supervision, internal and external audits, information technology, loan production, secondary marketing, servicing, and mortgage servicing assets.

Oct 23, 2026

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