Mortgage tech company Xactus announced that its valuation solution Appraisal Firewall X has met federal requirements and is capable of fulfilling Fannie Mae property data collection orders. Appraisal Firewall X connects mortgage lenders with vetted and trained property data collectors to deliver the value acceptance + property data and hybrid appraisal solutions, the company said […]
Colombian artist Fernando Botero, who died in September, was known for his plump, colorful and playful portraits of all levels of society – from a Colombian seamstress to crime boss Pablo Escobar to the pope. His ashes will be buried in Italy, but before that his remains made a stop in his native city of […]
The Florida Bankers Association (FBA) has named Kathy Kraninger, former Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) director during the Trump administration, to replace Alex Sanchez as chief executive officer. Kraninger will be the fourth CEO of the trade group, which was established in 1888 to advocate for Florida banks. In a social media post, Sanchez said the FBA “will continue […]
Home prices continued to accelerate in August, rising a seasonally adjusted 0.68% from July and hitting another record high for the fourth consecutive month. Prices in nearly half of the nation’s 50 largest markets climbed by 0.75% or more. Even on a non-adjusted basis, August’s gain of 0.24% was more than 60% larger than the […]
Rocket Pro TPO, the wholesale arm of Rocket Mortgage, on Monday raised agency conforming loan limits to $750,000, ahead of the Federal Housing Finance Agency’s (FHFA) decision expected in November. Amid fiercer competition in a shrinking mortgage market, other lenders may follow suit in the coming days or weeks, as in previous years. Companies are pressured to launch new […]
Real estate investment trust Rithm Capital Corp has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Computershare Mortgage Services Inc. for about $720 million, the companies announced Monday. The deal includes the purchase of Specialized Loan Servicing LLC. The deal represents the second major acquisition that New York-based Rithm, which operates NewRez, Caliber and other businesses, has announced in the past three months. In […]
Mortgage companies raising debt in the current high mortgage rates landscape is a sign that market conditions are improving, although a recovery from the downturn may come later than expected, analysts told HousingWire. Executives have decided to improve liquidity to fund their businesses and investments, targeting mortgage servicing rights (MSRs) deals. And recent transactions show […]
After several quiet weeks in movie theaters, four films entered wide release over the weekend. “PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie” came out the top dog, with $23 million in ticket sales, according to studio estimates Sunday. The performances of all four films – “PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie,” “Saw X,” “The Creator” and “Dumb Money” […]
Syrian writer and veteran government critic Khaled Khalifa has died of cardiac arrest at the age of 59 at his home in Damascus, a close friend told AFP. Khalifa, who hailed from Maryamin in northwestern Aleppo province, was celebrated for his novels, television screenplays and newspaper columns, and honored with several of the Arab […]
In northern Chile, Teofila Challapa learned to weave surrounded by the hills and sandy roads of the Atacama Desert. “Spin the threads, girl,” her grandmother told her a half a century ago. Aymara women like Challapa, now 59, become acquainted with wool threads under blue skies and air so thin that outsiders struggle to breathe. […]
Why are mortgage rates rising? This is a question many people are asking — even some of the Federal Reserve members. We have had back-to-back weeks of the bond market getting wild since the key 10-year yield level of 4.34% broke higher. It didn’t help that the Fed was hawkish after the Fed meeting, as […]
Pope Francis created 21 new cardinals at a ritual-filled ceremony Saturday, including key figures at the Vatican and in the field who will help enact his reforms and cement his legacy as he enters a crucial new phase in running the Roman Catholic Church. On a crisp sunny morning filled with cheers from St. Peter’s […]
When 2019 finalists England and New Zealand meet again to open the Cricket World Cup next week, it will mark the tournament’s return to India after 12 years. But preparations for this year’s tournament — in which the home side will start among the favorites and won the event when it was last played in […]
A man who prosecutors say ordered the 1996 killing of rapper Tupac Shakur was arrested and charged with murder Friday in a long-awaited breakthrough in one of hip-hop’s most enduring mysteries. Duane “Keffe D” Davis has long been known to investigators as one of four suspects identified early in the investigation. He isn’t the accused […]
The recently completed $300 million-plus acquisition of Home Point Capital by Mr. Cooper provided an attractive opportunity to bolster the company’s existing mortgage servicing rights (MSR) portfolio, and it’s expected to boost the company’s bottom line within the next couple of quarters. This is according to Jay Bray, CEO of Mr. Cooper, in an interview […]
The loan officers that Scott Groves talks to are struggling. Really struggling. Mortgage rates are around 7.7%, the highest levels in over 20 years, and LOs across America are having to reset their strategies. It’s no longer about just outlasting a bad market for a couple of months. “I would say a vast majority of […]
The Biden-Harris Administration marked a critical step forward in its efforts to deliver student debt relief to as many borrowers as possible through negotiated rulemaking under the Higher Education Act, even as extreme House Republicans threaten a government shutdown that would hurt families, communities, and our economy. The U.S. details ⇒ BusinessMediaguide.Com portal received this […]
Many millions of Chinese tourists are expected to travel within their country, splurging on hotels, tours, attractions and meals in a boost to the economy during the 8-day autumn holiday period that began Friday. This year’s holiday began with the Mid-Autumn Festival on Friday and also includes the Oct. 1 National Day. The public holidays […]
Exiled Afghan female athletes are participating in the 2023 Asian Games in Hangzhou, China, which end Oct. 8. They say they want to raise awareness of the plight of women in Afghanistan, who are barred from playing any sports in the country. Waheed Faizi has the story, narrated by Elizabeth Cherneff. details ⇒ BusinessMediaguide.Com portal […]
Even though mortgage origination volumes are down, we’re experiencing a highly competitive purchase market. That means a number of businesses, seeking to grow their revenue, will likely look to expand their reach to the default and REO space. But for those who haven’t done their homework, this is not an easy step, nor is it […]
Having completed the $12 billion acquisition of Black Knight, Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) is confident in evolving into a true life-of-loan platform: powering origination to final settlement, all in one unified digital ecosystem, executives said during its conference call with analysts. “By integrating Black Knight servicing, and robust data and analytics offering with ICE’s industry leading […]
By: Jessica Ramakis, Director, Grants Policy Office, Office of Planning Evaluation and Policy Development, and Matthew Soldner, Commissioner, National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance, Institute of Education Sciences & Evaluation Officer, U.S. Department of Education The U.S. Department of Education (ED) strives to support the education community–including families, students, educators, State and local […]
Mortgage rates climbed again this week as investors braced themselves for ‘higher-for-longer’ conditions following last week’s Fed meeting. Additionally, the yield on 10-year treasuries shot up to 4.6% on September 27 from 4.3% a week prior. Just before noon on Thursday, they were Freddie Mac‘s Primary Mortgage Market Survey, which focuses on conventional and conforming […]
HousingWire Editor in Chief Sarah Wheeler sat down with John Ashley, chief information officer and chief information security officer at PRMG, to talk about what the company is building versus buying, and how regulators are ramping up privacy and security standards. Sarah Wheeler: Tell me a little bit about your background and what you’ve done […]
Veteran actor Michael Gambon, who was known to many for his portrayal of Hogwarts headmaster Albus Dumbledore in six of the eight “Harry Potter” films, has died, his publicist said Thursday. He was 82. A statement by his family, issued by his publicist, said he died following “a bout of pneumonia.” “We are devastated to […]
By: Naomi Stern, Federation of American Scientists Environmental Sustainability and Infrastructure Impact Fellow, U.S. Department of Education This September, I had the honor of participating in the 2023 Green Strides Tour in California. As a fellow with the U.S. Department of Education, I knew that the schools and districts we would visit represent diverse examples […]
Rhode Island-based chartered bank Washington Trust Company has agreed to pay $9 million to settle a redlining case with the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), the parties announced Wednesday. The agreement requires court approval. Washington Trust, known as the oldest U.S. community bank, was accused of illegally avoiding providing mortgage services to majority Black and Hispanic neighborhoods in Rhode Island. […]
TV’s late-night hosts planned to return to their evening sketches and monologues by next week, reinstating the flow of topical humor silenced for five months by the newly ended Hollywood’s writers strike. Bill Maher led the charge back to work by announcing early Wednesday that his HBO show “Real Time with Bill Maher” would be […]
Homebuyers faced surging mortgage costs, fees and monthly payments in 2022 amid a tightening monetary policy designed to combat persistent inflation. And because their income didn’t keep up, lenders’ denials for a home loan jumped last year, according to a Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) report released Wednesday. Unfortunately, there’s been no sign of relief in 2023. […]
Government-sponsored enterprise (GSE) Fannie Mae announced on Wednesday that it will launch new programs and resources designed to tackle the homeownership gap experienced by the Latino community, designed to “to provide responsible access to housing and long-term sustainable homeownership opportunities.” The company also announced an expansion of its Special Purpose Credit Program (SPCP) pilot to […]
Maxwell, a Wells Fargo-backed mortgage fintech, announced Wednesday that it has struck a deal to acquire the digital lending platform Revvin (formerly known as MortgageHippo) to enhance its point-of-sale technology. The financial terms of the transaction have not been disclosed. That is Maxwell’s second acquisition since its inception in 2015. Maxwell acquired LenderSelect Mortgage Group […]
In the week following the Federal Open Market Committee‘s meeting, mortgage applications sunk. For the week that ended Sept. 22, mortgage applications fell 1.3% from the prior week, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association. Based on the FOMC’s most recent projections, rates are expected to be higher for longer, which has driven Treasury […]
The Writers Guild of America (WGA) said its members could return to work on Wednesday while a ratification vote takes place on a new three-year contract with Hollywood studios. Union leaders “voted unanimously to lift the restraining order and end the strike as of 12:01 a.m. PT/3:01 a.m. ET on Wednesday, September 27th,” the WGA […]
Source: Blend In Q2 2023, Blend reported a non-GAAP net loss of $22.7 million in the second quarter, narrowing its financial loss compared to a non-GAAP net loss of $35.6 million in Q1 and non-GAAP net loss of $45.1 million in Q2 2022. By focusing on cutting costs and prioritizing the Blend Builder platform, executives […]
Mortgage Machine Services, a digital origination technology provider, has appointed Dan McGrew as director of sales. In this role, McGrew will shoulder the responsibility of marketing the company’s digital products, including the flagship loan origination system (LOS) Mortgage Machine. “As Mortgage Machine Services continues to pioneer technology for the mortgage industry, we knew we needed […]
Mortgage servicer Nationstar, doing business as Mr. Cooper, has filed a lawsuit against electronic payment processing vendor ACI Payments related to the damages it allegedly suffered from unauthorized mortgage payments imposed on its customers two years ago. In June, ACI Worldwide and one of its subsidiaries, ACI Payments, agreed to pay a $25 million civil penalty, without admitting any wrongdoing, for illegally […]
The U.S. Department of Education’s (Department) Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) has awarded more than $35 million in funding for 138 new awards supporting personnel preparation, ongoing professional learning, and leadership development to increase the number of well-prepared, diverse and effective personnel serving children with disabilities. details ⇒ BusinessMediaguide.Com portal received this content from […]
With the U.S. House of Representatives Republican majority unable to bring government funding measures to the House floor for a vote, federal officials, lawmakers and agencies are preparing for a federal government shutdown that would take place after current appropriations expire at midnight on September 30. Organizations including the National Low Income Housing Coalition (NLIHC), […]
Acra Lending, a private mortgage lender, announced its integration with Tavant’s Touchless Lending Collateral Analysis. This partnership marks a milestone in Tavant’s expansion into non-QM lending. It is also turning Acra’s business into a technology-first one, the statement said. Collateral Analysis is a proprietary product of Tavant’s Touchless Lending automation platform. It was designed to seamlessly integrate […]
Plunk, an AI-powered home analytics platform, has partnered with two real estate industry marketing companies, Union Street Media and Realforce, to scale its real-time data and analytics across multiple digital channels. Plunk’s platform offers real-time insights into home valuation, risk assessment, and remodeling possibilities. The company is partnering with Union Street Media, a leader in business […]
Mortgage tech firm Blend Labs has added an assets-derived income capability to its existing “Blend Income” product. The newest enhancement will allow lenders to have additional ways to verify more income sources – including social security benefits, pension distributions, military benefits, child support and alimony payments – far earlier in the application process than traditionally […]
Spanish prosecutors have charged pop star Shakira with failing to pay $7.1 million in tax on her 2018 income, authorities said Tuesday, in Spain’s latest fiscal allegations against the Colombian singer. Shakira is alleged to have used an offshore company based in a tax haven to avoid paying the tax, Barcelona prosecutors said in a […]
After a boost in July, the sales pace of new homes slowed in August, according to data published on Wednesday by the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). In August, the sales pace of new homes fell 8.7% compared to July, reaching a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 675,000. […]
Available inventory of homes for sale is on the rise in late September, which is very unusual for this time of year. In fact, inventory is growing faster than this time a year ago. This is a demand-driven slowdown, because new listings supply is still running 9% to 10% fewer homes for sale each week […]
Actor David McCallum, who became a teen heartthrob in the hit series “The Man From U.N.C.L.E.” in the 1960s and was the eccentric medical examiner in the popular “NCIS” 40 years later, has died. He was 90. McCallum died Monday of natural causes surrounded by family at New York Presbyterian Hospital, CBS said in a […]