BusinessMediaguide.Com

The National Reverse Mortgage Lenders Association (NRMLA) concluded the 2024 edition of its Annual Meeting and Expo on Thursday afternoon. Those in attendance told HousingWire’s Reverse Mortgage Daily (RMD) that the event provided ample opportunity for networking and educational content while boosting hopes that the industry can grow in the coming years. Different kinds of […]

Editor in Chief Sarah Wheeler sat down with Manish Garg, senior vice president of product and technology at EarnUp, an autonomous financial wellness platform, to talk about how his company is using gen AI to deliver a personalized experience for customers at scale. Garg has a deep background in building enterprise software and has spent […]

Capping off a dramatic few weeks in Washington, D.C., the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate have passed a continuing resolution that will fund the government through Dec. 20 — more than a month after Election Day, and just weeks before the new Congress is scheduled to be sworn in and the presidential […]

The question from the housing industry after the Federal Reserve’s half-point interest rate cut is simple — will this bring buyers back to the stalled housing market? A new report from Redfin suggests that it is already happening. The company analyzed mortgage rate-lock data from Optimal Blue and found that locks have risen 68% this […]

Elevated mortgage rates have strained housing affordability for more than two years. With rates now falling — and more downward movement expected after the Federal Reserve‘s recent interest rate cut — two new reports suggest that affordability is getting better too. The third-quarter 2024 housing affordability report from Attom says that falling mortgage rates, rising […]

New York-based Simplist Technologies, which has developed a consumer-facing mortgage platform, introduced a new software solution on Thursday for mortgage professionals that combines a loan origination system (LOS) with a point-of-sale system (POS). The integrated platform, known as Sonar, has artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities to automate rote tasks and speed up workflow processes. Sonar was […]

As a vast majority of older adults prefer to remain in their current homes as they age, a key to successfully aging in place lies in preparation and adequate understanding of the dwelling, according to a new examination by the The Wall Street Journal. The report cited 2021 data from Harvard University’s Joint Center for […]

Multiple listing services (MLSs) have a wealth of data, and one technology company thinks it has found an innovative way to use it. Real estate data company StreetWire has partnered with Northern California MLS MetroList to produce an insurance product called Home Value Lock. It’s designed to protect homeowners from declining home values. The coverage […]

The American dream of homeownership is slipping away for many, as the gap between wages and home prices continues to widen. In the 1970s, home prices aligned more closely with income levels. Today, escalating real estate costs—particularly in high-cost areas—are pricing millions of Americans out of the housing market. One potential solution? Extending the traditional […]

The first day of this year’s National Reverse Mortgage Lenders Association (NRMLA) Annual Meeting and Expo in San Diego wound down with an announcement that marks the end of an era. The association honored two of its most prominent past and present members with distinguished service awards. These were given to Peter Bell, NRMLA’s current […]

Negative depictions of Americans ages 50 and older have lessened over a five-year period, with negative sentiment in online media and marketing images dropping from 28% in 2018 to 10% in 2023, according to research published this week by senior advocacy organization AARP. “The 50-plus population is pictured as more active and independent, less fearful, […]

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) announced on Wednesday it has changed its proposal to amend the Suspended Counterparty Program (SCP), offering a less severe version after several trade groups raised concerns about its impacts on the mortgage market.  The SCP, established in June 2012 during the Obama administration, requires that entities report to FHFA […]

Mortgage applications are now at their highest level in more than two years after an 11% jump during the week ending Sept. 20, according to the newest weekly applications survey from the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA). The 11% increase in the MBA’s overall applications index — boosting the index to its highest point since July […]

A judge in Arizona granted Mat Grella, the former president of NEXA Mortgage, a motion to dismiss a lawsuit filed by the company. NEXA has accused Grella of causing the failure of a $24 million hangar-office property purchase and the brokerage firm is preparing to file an amended complaint.  The saga began in March when […]

Applicants hoping to get a mortgage job in 2024. (Image created by AI in Midjourney.) ” data-image-caption=” Applicants hoping to get a mortgage job in 2024. (Image created by AI in Midjourney.) ” data-medium-file=”https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/waitingroom.jpg?w=300″ data-large-file=”https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/waitingroom.jpg?w=1024″ tabindex=”0″ role=”button” src=”https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/waitingroom.jpg?w=1024″ alt=”Applicants hoping to get a mortgage job in 2024.” class=”wp-image-483302″ srcset=”https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/waitingroom.jpg 1200w, https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/waitingroom.jpg?resize=150,84 150w, https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/waitingroom.jpg?resize=300,169 300w, https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/waitingroom.jpg?resize=768,432 […]

New York-based asset manager Rithm Capital, the owner of multichannel lender Newrez, announced on Tuesday that it plans to raise money for “general corporate purposes” by selling up to 34.5 million shares of common stock to investors in a public offering. The company said underwriters will offer shares from time to time in negotiated transactions […]

Roemanu, the holding company for Toorak Capital Partners and Merchants Mortgage, announced on Tuesday that it has hired former Finance of America executive Charles Macintosh as its chief operating officer. Macintosh will also join Roemanu’s executive committee and oversee multiple areas of the business from its headquarters in Tampa and its office in Summit, New […]

Top U.S. mortgage lender United Wholesale Mortgage (UWM) this week won a three-year legal battle with a mortgage brokerage firm. The case involves the lender’s controversial “All-In” initiative, which states that brokers who work with UWM cannot engage in business with competitors Rocket Mortgage and Fairway Independent Mortgage Corp.  On Monday, U.S. District Court Judge […]

Seller repurchases of Freddie Mac mortgages rose to $430 million in the second quarter of 2024, a 29.1% increase from the first quarter, according to an analysis of public filings by Inside Mortgage Finance. By contrast, sellers of loans through fellow government-sponsored enterprise (GSE) Fannie Mae repurchased $268.5 million in noncompliant loans during the same […]

On Monday, a coalition of eight senators — seven Democrats and one Independent — submitted a letter to Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) Director Sandra Thompson, urging her to phase in a series of modernized energy-efficiency standards for mortgages backed by the government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The signatories include Sens. Cory […]

Mortgage technology platform provider Dark Matter Technologies announced on Monday that it has added a second loan origination system (LOS) — NOVA — to its product lineup. NOVA joins current LOS Empower, and both offerings will aim to offer distinct options for a wider range of mortgage lenders, according to the announcement. “Adopting a dual-product […]

California-based mortgage lender loanDepot has hired military advocate Bryan Bergjans as part of an effort to boost its lending capacity in the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) space.  Bergjans joined the company this month as its national director of military growth and strategy. Before that, Bergjans spent eight years at Caliber Home Loans, including […]

The Federal Reserve did something this week it hadn’t done in more than four years when it lowered the federal funds rate by half a percentage point. But for mortgage industry professionals hampered by fewer sales opportunities since the Fed’s streak of rate hikes began in March 2022, will this be the start of better […]

In a new episode of the HousingWire Daily podcast, host Sarah Wheeler chats with Bob Broeksmit, president and CEO of the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA). The pair discuss the latest happenings for independent mortgage banks (IMBs) during the election season, updates to the Federal Housing Administration (FHA)’s 203(k) loan program — which allows homebuyers to […]

The Homebuyers Privacy Protection Act of 2024, a U.S. Senate bill introduced this past December that targets mortgage trigger leads, has been incorporated into the fiscal year 2025 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). This is a bill that Congress must pass each year, since it refers to laws that specify the annual budget for the […]

The HousingWire award spotlight series highlights the individuals and organizations that have been recognized through our Editors’ Choice Awards. Nominations for HousingWire’s 2024 Tech Trendsetters award are open now through Monday, Sept. 30. Click here to nominate someone. If we learned anything from HousingWire’s recent AI Summit, artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly reshaping lending by streamlining processes, reducing costs, and […]

Like the traditional forward space, the reverse mortgage industry has been operating in an elevated interest rate environment for some time. While news of the Federal Reserve lowering its benchmark interest rate by 50 basis points (bps) to a range of 4.75% to 5% will have wider economic ramifications in the government’s ongoing efforts to […]

Heartland Bank, the leading reverse mortgage lender in Australia and New Zealand, will rebrand its dedicated reverse mortgage division from “Heartland Finance” to “Heartland Bank” following a recent acquisition and a repositioning of its offerings. “We are excited to deliver the Heartland Bank brand to our reverse mortgage customers,” said Medina Cicak, the bank’s newly […]

The overall critical defect rate for mortgages increased in the first quarter of 2024, ending five consecutive quarters of decline. But the increase itself was relatively modest and the share of loans with defects now stands at 1.58%, according to a report released Thursday by ACES Quality Management. The company’s Mortgage QC Industry Trends Report […]

CMG Home Loans, the retail lending division of CMG Financial, has its eyes on growing its dedicated reverse mortgage segment. In addition to recently making a key operations hire in an effort to expand its capacity to originate and fund loans, market conditions — including an expanding Home Equity Conversion Mortgage (HECM) for Purchase market […]

Elder financial exploitation (EFE) is a common form of elder abuse that impacts as much as 10% of older Americans each year. But to better combat its growing commonality, more information is needed — particularly for vulnerable communities — according to senior advocacy organization AARP. “While financial exploitation can occur in any community, gaps in […]

The Federal Reserve lowered its benchmark interest rate on Wednesday by 50 basis points (bps) to a range of 4.75% to 5%, turning an important corner in the central bank’s fight against inflation. The cut is the first since March 2020 after the Fed raised interest rates to a 23-year high point to cool the economy […]

For those of us in the mortgage world, the spring and summer market may be showing some signs of slowing down, and what a ride this market has been. If the past few years have taught us anything, even the veterans must find ways to adapt, and anything can happen in our industry. You deserve […]

Federal Reserve policymakers are expected to lower the benchmark interest rate on Wednesday for the first time in more than four years. But it appears to be anyone’s guess as to how large the cut will be. Interest rate traders were giving shorter odds on Tuesday afternoon to a cut of 50 basis points (bps), […]

Global investment firm Carlyle has agreed to purchase up to $300 million of equity sharing home loans from home equity solutions provider Unison. Carlyle also made a strategic investment into the San Francisco-based Unison, enabling it to launch its Equity Sharing Home Loan product.  “We are excited to partner with Unison to provide an attractive solution […]

A historic rise in home prices and nearly three years of high mortgage rates have put housing issues front and center in the 2024 presidential campaign. Kamala Harris has outlined an ambitious vision for housing that would involve the construction of 3 million new homes in four years. At a policy discussion on Monday hosted […]