Welcome back to Tech Pulse — HousingWire‘s weekly series rounding up the latest in technology news, including tools, integrations and trends that impact mortgage and real estate. Here’s what happened this week: Realtor.com parent Move acquires Zenlist Realtor.com parent Move Inc. has acquired Zenlist, a real estate tech startup known for its agent-client collaboration tools. The deal boosts Realtor.com’s […]
VantageScore and FICO have escalated their rivalry in the mortgage space following the Federal Housing Finance Agency’s (FHFA) decision to allow Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to purchase loans underwritten with VantageScore 4.0 as an alternative to the Classic FICO score. Both companies published analyses this week from their data scientists. Naturally, each claims their score more […]
After launching a new proprietary loan product this spring, one of the nation’s leading reverse mortgage lenders has expanded the offering this week to more states. Mutual of Omaha Mortgage announced on Friday that its SecureEquity+ product, which became available in April to eligible California and Florida residents, is now available in 12 additional states. […]
A new lawsuit filed in California accuses Wells Fargo of concealing that it improperly charged undisclosed float fees to mortgage borrowers during loan origination. Filed by borrower Lance Baird, the issue came to light in 2022 when Wells Fargo sent out vague notices to customers, admitting it had mistakenly charged float fees during the mortgage […]
Mortgage compliance has always required precision. But in today’s environment, it demands something more to ensure a smoother process for serving borrowers: speed. Regulatory scrutiny is rising and evolving rules are making compliance more complex. Regulators now expect lenders to demonstrate, continuously and in real time, that every interaction meets compliance standards. Yet many lenders […]
A federal judge has dismissed the claims of both the plaintiffs and defendants in an appraisal discrimination lawsuit that garnered national attention when it was filed in 2022. Nathan Connolly and Shani Mott — Maryland homeowners who are Black — sued appraiser Shane Lanham, his company 20/20 Valuations and mortgage lender loanDepot for allegedly undervaluing […]
Nonqualified mortgage (non-QM) lender Logan Finance Corp. on Thursday announced the promotion of Dave Weatherford to Executive Vice President of TPO Production, effective immediately. The promotion follows Logan Finance’s launch of its new Open Road product series, announced in June. The series, which expands upon Logan’s preexisting non-QM offerings, involves seven specialized Non-QM mortgage solutions designed […]
The Trump administration has “effectively disbanded” the interagency Property Appraisal and Valuation Equity (PAVE) task force, but a Democratic senator wants to revive it. Raphael Warnock of Georgia introduced the Appraisal Modernization Act on Thursday. The legislation seeks to address systemic bias in the appraisal process, effectively writing into law many of the measures the […]
Government officials in Mesa County, Colorado, urged state legislators in an open letter this week to preserve a property tax exemption for older adults and disabled veterans amid the state’s ongoing budget constraints. Colorado’s senior property tax exemption, which has been in place for the past 25 years, cuts 50% from the first $200,000 of […]
A class-action lawsuit filed in Maryland accuses mortgage lender loanDepot of violating federal loan officer (LO) compensation rules and steering borrowers into higher-rate loans to boost its financial performance ahead of its 2021 initial public offering (IPO). The lawsuit describes a “sophisticated, years-long scheme” around the falsification of internal documents and federal disclosures to maximize […]
The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA)’s Builder Application Survey data for June 2025 revealed that mortgage applications for new-home purchases increased 8.5% compared to a year ago. Compared to the previous month, applications decreased by 4%, which does not include any adjustment for typical seasonal patterns. “Applications to purchase new homes fell in June, consistent with […]
In 1969, The Rolling Stones gifted us their 10th studio album, Let It Bleed. Tucked away as the final track, “You Can’t Always Get What You Want” started life as a B-side to “Honky Tonk Women” before becoming an anthem for an entire generation. Here’s the kicker: this iconic track never actually hit number one. […]
In the days following the announcement that VantageScore 4.0 was suddenly in play for conventional mortgages, FinLocker‘s Brian Vieaux had to burst some bubbles. Most of the 15 to 20 loan officers he spoke to were ecstatic about being able to use the new credit scoring model. Millions of new prospective borrowers could be scored […]
Three federal banking regulators announced on Wednesday the rescission of the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) final rule issued in October 2023. The decision made by the governing boards of the Federal Reserve System, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC) will result in the agencies reinstating […]
The Pennsylvania House of Representatives on Monday passed legislation to protect homeowners from unknowingly losing their home and generational wealth by requiring in-person financial counseling for anyone considering a reverse mortgage. H.B. 1466, also known as the “Cephas bill” after its sponsor, state Rep. Morgan Cephas (D-Philadelphia), would mandate in-person financial counseling before a borrower […]
The Tampa Bay Rays are set to be sold by current owner Stu Sternberg to a group led by Patrick Zalupski, the CEO and founder of Dream Finders Homes, for approximately $1.7 billion. The deal for the Major League Baseball franchise has been agreed to in principle and could be finalized as early as September, […]
MeridianLink, a provider of modern software platforms for financial institutions, has appointed Denise Cox as its chief customer officer. Cox brings more than two decades of experience in leading customer-facing, post-sales functions at technology companies, including Olo, Omnicell, Cisco and NetApp. In her role as CCO, Cox will oversee MeridianLink’s services, support and customer success […]
AssumeList, a platform for discovering homes with assumable mortgages, announced on Wednesday that it has partnered with the San Diego Association of Realtors (SDAR) to provide exclusive benefits to its real estate professionals. As part of the partnership, SDAR members will receive discounted access to AssumeList’s subscription platform along with specialized training, which will help […]
Mortgage applications decreased 10% from one week earlier, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA)’s weekly mortgage applications survey for the week ending July 11. Last week’s results included an adjustment for the July 4 holiday. On an unadjusted basis, the index increased 13% compared with the prior week. The refinance index decreased […]
Editor in Chief Sarah Wheeler sat down with Bill Packer, chief operating officer at Longbridge Financial, to talk about the ways his company is using AI to serve reverse mortgage borrowers. Packer has worked in the consumer lending space for four decades, with deep expertise in technology and operations. This interview has been edited for […]
Mortgage industry professionals had more questions than answers following last week’s bombshell announcement that the government-sponsored enterprises Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have approved the use of VantageScore 4.0, a new credit scoring model. A week after the initial announcement, Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) Director Bill Pulte answered several key questions. In an FAQ […]
New American Funding (NAF), a top-25 U.S. mortgage lender, notified the California attorney general last week of a data breach involving one of its vendors, which potentially compromises customers’ personal information. NAF on June 6 discovered “suspicious activity associated with information provided to one of our vendors that provided notary systems, Mobile Notary Zone,” according to […]
A recent report from the Urban Institute analyzed potential reasons behind the increasing number of delinquencies on Federal Housing Administration (FHA) loans. While the increase is sizable, it’s not a cause for concern, the authors of the report suggest. Laurie Goodman, Jun Zhu, Ted Tozer and Jung Hyun Choi — the authors of the July […]
Mortgage rates had been moving downward of late, but the positive momentum reflected in purchase application activity lost steam this week. HousingWire’s Mortgage Rates Center on Tuesday showed that rates rose slightly during the past week, ending a two-week pattern of declines. Rates for 30-year conventional loans averaged 6.86%, up 1 basis point from one […]
Jeff Hutchinson is AnnieMac Home Mortgage‘s new senior vice president of retail production, and he will help lead a new group on the East Coast. The Tuesday announcement also detailed the official co-founding of a new Momentum Group division by Hutchinson, Ian Aubourg and Rick Dionne. With more than 20 years in the mortgage industry, […]
President Trump on Thursday morning accused Sen. Adam Schiff (D-CA), the junior senator of California, of engaging in a pattern of mortgage fraud. Citing conclusive evidence reached by Fannie Mae’s financial crimes division, Trump wrote on Truth Social that Schiff reported his primary residence to be in Maryland rather than in California. Primary residence mortgages […]
The failure-to-launch trend that started with millennials is continuing with Gen Z, and many are turning to parents for assistance, according to a new column by Bloomberg. According to a 2024 Bank of America study, over half of adult Gen Zers reported that they don’t pay for their own housing. A separate study by Savings.com found […]
Bayview Asset Management’s $1.3 billion deal to acquire Guild Holding Co., the parent of Guild Mortgage, has left loan officers wondering how the traditionally purchase-focused lender would integrate refinance capabilities to leverage the $770 billion servicing portfolio of soon-to-be sister company Lakeview Loan Servicing, the nation’s second-largest mortgage servicer. Guild LOs, who spoke with HousingWire […]
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) announced Monday that it will no longer enforce disparate impact analysis in fair lending risk assessments, following a directive from the White House issued three months ago. “Consistent with EO 14281, the OCC supervisory process for fair lending compliance no longer includes examining for disparate impact […]
Informative Research, a provider of credit and verification solutions to the mortgage lending community, announced on Monday the availability of Halcyon’s IRS tax transcript service within Informative Research‘s verification platform. The enhancement expands Informative Research’s suite of income verification and employment verification options, enabling lenders to access secure, permissioned tax transcript data directly from the […]
The American workforce is undergoing a seismic shift, with a growing number of professionals leaving W-2 jobs behind. Data from Statista projects that by 2027, around 86.5 million Americans — more than half of the U.S. workforce — will be freelancing. The growing “gig economy” is reshaping the future of homebuying, and savvy brokers are […]
It’s no secret that low-income housing options are in short supply across much the country. And a report this week out of Fairfax County, Virginia, illustrates the challenges that seniors can face when trying to find subsidized housing. Fairfax County, which borders the District of Columbia and is home to about 1.1 million residents, is […]
Welcome back to Tech Pulse — HousingWire‘s weekly series rounding up the latest in technology — including tools, integrations and trends that impact mortgage and real estate. Here’s what happened this week: Realtor.com adds property tax appeal tool with Ownwell integration Realtor.com now offers property tax monitoring and appeals through a new partnership with Ownwell. With rising homeownership costs, this […]
Lead generation for mortgage brokers and officers is all about consistently filling your pipeline with individuals who are interested in buying a home now or in the future. Considering the fluctuating state of the housing market and inflated mortgage rates, it’s even more crucial to showcase your expertise and amazing service to bring qualified clients […]
Westcor Land Title Insurance Co. is now the second title vendor taking part in Fannie Mae‘s title insurance waiver pilot program. Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) Director Bill Pulte announced the move in a social media post. The waiver pilot, relaunched by Fannie Mae in March 2024, allows approved mortgage lenders to use an automated […]
Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) and Congressman Stephen Lynch (D-Mass.), announced on Friday that next week will be known as “Anti-Crypto Corruption Week.” During this time, they plan to rally Democrats to push back against Republican efforts to fast-track three pieces of legislation related to cryptocurrency — the “Clarity Act,” the “GENIUS Act” and a bill […]
Rising property taxes, insurance payments and growing delinquencies are eroding the promise of long-term stability in homeownership, according to a new blog from Cotality. The post revealed that across the country, more people are starting to fall behind on their mortgages due to the post-purchase costs. These include property taxes and homeowners insurance, both of […]
“Marry the house, date the rate” is a phrase that was popularized during the post-pandemic era of rising mortgage rates. Lenders urged borrowers to focus on finding a house they were head over heels with and worry about their interest rate down the line. Borrowers who were accustomed to rates hovering near 3% didn’t realize […]
Bilt, which operates a loyalty program and credit card that converts rent payments into points, has secured a $250 million funding round led by General Catalyst and GID, with participation from United Wholesale Mortgage (UWM), the nation’s largest mortgage lender. The funding brings Bilt’s valuation to $10.75 billion and will fuel expansion across the broader […]
On Thursday, the U.S. Senate confirmed Jonathan Gould as head of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) in a 50-45 vote. The confirmation marks another Trump administration appointee who supports more lenient oversight of the banking sector and a more welcoming stance toward cryptocurrency. Gould previously held roles at the OCC during […]
Fairway Home Mortgage announced this week that it’s donating $1 million to the ongoing relief efforts following catastrophic flooding in Texas. Fairway has a large presence in Texas, where at least 170 people are known to be missing in the epicenter of Kerr County as a result of the flooding, according to CBS News. Nearly […]
Panorama Mortgage Group, a multichannel mortgage company headquartered in Las Vegas, announced Thursday the launch of Travisa Financial, a dba that expands the company’s reach within the third-party origination (TPO) space. “Travisa gives us the opportunity to expand our reach to brokers and lenders who share our purpose; helping first-time buyers and underserved communities build […]
Private equity firm GTCR announced on Tuesday that it has made a significant investment in national real estate analytics and data solutions company Clear Capital. As part of the investment, GTCR is partnering with Clear Capital co-founder and CEO Duane Andrews. The transaction represents Clear Capital’s first outside investment, with GTCR becoming the company’s majority […]
Mortgage applications increased 9.4% from one week earlier, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending July 4, 2025. On an unadjusted basis, the index decreased 13% compared with the previous week. Last week’s results included an adjustment for the Independence Day holiday. The seasonally adjusted […]
A plaintiff in California is claiming that Xactus and Equifax did not conduct a “reasonable” investigation into claims of identity theft, which harmed her credit and violated the Fair Credit Reporting Act. The suit was filed in late May in the Superior Court of San Bernardino County, California, by plaintiff Junnan Guo, who is representing […]