The cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) for Social Security benefits could rise to 2.7% in 2026, up from this year’s 2.5%, according to estimates from The Senior Citizens League (TSCL). The COLA is based on the average Consumer Price Index for urban wage earners and clerical workers (CPI-W) for July, August and September, compared with the same […]
Mesa, a membership platform built for homeowners, announced on Wednesday a funding round of $24 million in debt and equity from partners in the housing, lending and home improvement space, bringing its total raised to over $33 million to date. Lowe’s and Paramount Residential Mortgage Group (PRMG) participated in the round, as well as Trinity […]
Keynova Group announced on Wednesday the results of its 2025 Mortgage-Home Equity Scorecard, a consumer experience benchmark that evaluates the top 12 U.S.-based mortgage and home equity lenders. Bank of America and PNC tied for first place in the annual Scorecard. The Scorecard, syndicated since 2005, reviews the digital capabilities and user experience at 12 […]
Mortgage applications continued to rise last week, up 10.9% from one week earlier. That’s according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) weekly mortgage applications survey for the week ending August 8, 2025. On an unadjusted basis, the index increased 10% compared with the previous week. The refinance index continued to rise, increasing 23% […]
Mortgage lending has shifted into an experience economy. Interest rates dominate conversations, yet only 29% of borrowers who complete a rate-and-term refinance stay with their current servicer, according to ICE Mortgage Technology’s July 2024 Mortgage Monitor report. Borrowers remember how they were treated long after they close their loan and that statistic signals a gap […]
Longtime U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) executive and mortgage professional John Bell III announced on LinkedIn that he’s leaving his role as executive director of the VA’s Loan Guaranty Service (LGY). Bell’s post on Monday touted his key accomplishments at the VA, such as increasing its mortgage market share from less than 1% to […]
United Wholesale Mortgage (UWM) chief technology officer Jason Bressler delivered a blunt message to mortgage professionals while on stage Tuesday at HousingWire’s AI Summit. The doom and gloom of high interest rates and industry consolidation aren’t going away soon, he said — but the practical use of artificial intelligence could give brokers a competitive edge. Lenders, […]
Mortgage rates — which have stayed remarkably consistent for much of 2025 — dipped to a new low point for the year last week, reaching 6.57%, according to Mortgage Daily News. The following day, HousingWire’s Mortgage Rates Center reported the 30-year conforming fixed rate at 6.86%. This week, HousingWire’s data revealed that the 30-year fixed […]
NEXA Mortgage and Tidalwave announced a strategic partnership Tuesday at HousingWire’s AI Summit that will give NEXA’s 3,200 brokers access to Tidalwave’s agentic AI technology platform. Tidalwave’s SOLO platform offers comprehensive mortgage automation capabilities including intelligent lead qualification, automated document processing, real-time underwriting support, multilingual client communication, hallucination-free AI communication through patent-pending mortgage contextualization technology […]
July 2025 saw a 3% month-over-month (MoM) drop in overall rate lock volume, led by a nearly 5% drop in purchase activity as affordability remained strained. That’s according to Optimal Blue‘s July 2025 Market Advantage mortgage data report, released on Tuesday. The report found that mortgage rates rose in July across all loan types, with […]
In mortgage lending, there’s no shortage of conversation around interest rates and closing costs. But beneath that surface-level focus lies a missed opportunity—one that could dramatically improve the financial well-being of millions of homeowners. It’s the opportunity to help borrowers optimize their blended debt rate and strategically reduce their total mortgage cost over time. Most […]
Outdated mobile homes that were built before the implementation of modern construction and safety standards in the 1970s can still be found across the country. Seniors living on fixed incomes often own these homes and don’t have a practical solution for replacing them. That’s where Bill Smith comes in. For the past decade, Smith — […]
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is reportedly considering three more candidates for the next Federal Reserve chair: Vice Chairs Michelle Bowman and Philip Jefferson, and Dallas Fed President Lorie Logan. However, other candidates will be interviewed in the coming weeks, Bloomberg reported based on talks with two administration officials. Potential candidates include President Donald Trump’s economic advisor […]
Non-QM lender Acra Lending announced on Monday the appointment of Shawn Stone as chief executive officer. Stone succeeds Keith Lind, who transitions to Chairman of the Board. Stone, who brings over 25 years of executive experience in financial services to the role, most recently was CEO and board member at LendingPoint, an Atlanta-based online loan […]
On Saturday, President Donald Trump shared an AI-generated image on Truth Social showing himself at the New York Stock Exchange with the phrases “MAGA LISTED NYSE” and “The Great American Mortgage Corporation,” dated November 2025. The post appeared to reference a Wall Street Journal report from Friday outlining Trump’s plan to make a stock offering […]
Mortgage originations hit their highest quarterly level since 2022, with both purchase and cash-out refinance activity approaching three-year highs, according to ICE Mortgage Technology’s Mortgage Monitor report for August. The report, released Monday, also revealed that total and tappable home equity reached record levels. “Homeowners are actively drawing on record equity with cash-out refinance loans, […]
On Saturday, President Donald Trump seemed to acknowledge reporting by The Wall Street Journal on Friday that he plans to IPO Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac by the end of this year. Trump posted an AI image on Truth Social of him at the New York Stock Exchange with the words: MAGA LISTED NYSE and […]
The line between reverse mortgages and home equity sharing products got a little blurrier on Thursday when a Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals panel reversed a lower court’s dismissal order in a proposed class-action suit against Unison. The opinion found that the plaintiffs suing Unison have shown that their arrangement with the company amounts to […]
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: ICE integrates Mortgage Analyzer with Freddie Mac’s borrower verification tool ICE Mortgage Technology has integrated Freddie Mac’s AIM Check API into its Mortgage Analyzer, enabling faster, AI-powered income […]
As artificial intelligence (AI) transforms housing, mortgage lending and real estate sales, industry leaders will gather Tuesday in Dallas for HousingWire’s AI Summit to discuss the opportunities and challenges presented by the emerging technology. Summit speakers include Eric Forney, director of expansion at Keller Williams, and LaTasha Waddy, chief legal officer at NFM Lending, who […]
The Trump administration is reportedly aiming for an initial public offering (IPO) of the government-sponsored entities (GSEs) Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac later this year. According to The Wall Street Journal, which spoke to sources familiar with the situation, the Trump administration is preparing to sell stock in Fannie and Freddie. Sources told the outlet […]
loanDepot is making more leadership changes following the return of founder and majority stakeholder Anthony Hsieh as CEO. Tom Fiddler has been promoted to president of retail lending while Dan Peña will serve as president of partnership. John Bianchi, the executive vice president of retail production since 2019, will depart the company. These moves come […]
loanDepot on Thursday reported that its second-quarter 2025 revenue increased by 3% to $283 million and adjusted revenue increased 5% to $292 million compared to the prior quarter. loanDepot’s first quarter saw the return of loanDepot founder and executive chairman Anthony Hsieh to the day-to-day operations at the California-based lender. The company’s second quarter marks the first quarter that Hsieh […]
Cypress Loan Servicing has reached a $2 million settlement with the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office (AGO) over allegations that it violated state foreclosure prevention and consumer protection laws. According to the AGO, Cypress — formerly known as Rushmore Loan Management Services — allegedly put homeowners at unlawful and unnecessary risk of foreclosure by violating Section […]
Cryptocurrency is a hot topic across the global economy — and the mortgage industry is no different. If they haven’t already, many Americans may start to consider the use of crypto in their retirement accounts. A recent article published by senior advocacy organization AARP discussed the pros and cons of adding crypto to investment portfolios. […]
Just three months after raising $850 million, PennyMac Financial Services has returned to the market with another debt issuance, this time offering $650 million to investors. Competitor United Wholesale Mortgage (UWM) also indicated that it plans to issue debt soon in order to refinance existing notes. On Thursday, Pennymac announced its intention to offer notes […]
Chase Home Lending is rolling out a nationwide mortgage rate sale for homebuyers, offering temporary discounts on purchase applications starting Thursday, the bank announced. The promotion, which runs through Aug. 18, marks the first time in recent years that Chase has offered a nationwide mortgage rate discount, according to the company. Qualifying buyers — any […]
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is cleaning up its books and auctioning off roughly $444 million in reverse mortgages on Wednesday to reduce the risk to its Mutual Mortgage Insurance (MMI) Fund. The sale includes about 1,600 Home Equity Conversion Mortgages (HECMs) tied to vacant single-family homes where the borrowers are […]
Boston-based Hometap announced at the end of July that it has deployed more than $2 billion to 20,000-plus homeowners through its home equity investment (HEI) platform. The milestone comes less than 18 months after Hometap achieved $1 billion in home equity investments — a reflection of rising demand for alternative financing solutions. “This milestone reflects […]
Now that mortgage rates have reached a year-to-date low of 6.57%, the question remains: is this low enough to attract more homebuyers, or do we need rates to drop to 6%? I’ve frequently mentioned the significance of the 6% mark, so let me explain. In 2022, we experienced the most significant decline in home sales […]
United Wholesale Mortgage (UWM) is now offering a 90 basis-point incentive for rate-and-term refinances. This discount comes as many market participants anticipate a rate cut from the Federal Reserve, which should prompt borrowers to seek ways to reduce their mortgage payments. UWM’s offering, announced on Wednesday, is available for newly locked loans through Sept. 16 […]
Unlock Technologies, a fintech that offers flexible financing options for homeowners who want to access their equity without taking out a loan, is now providing home equity agreements (HEAs) in five additional states: Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, New Hampshire and Wyoming. Following the addition of Kentucky, Indiana, Missouri and Ohio earlier this year, Unlock HEAs are […]
Mortgage applications rebounded from last week’s low and increased 3.1% from one week earlier, driven by the third straight weekly decline in mortgage rates. That’s according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) weekly mortgage applications survey for the week ending Aug. 1, 2025. On an unadjusted basis, the index increased 3% compared to […]
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will be allowed to double their annual investments in Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) properties from $2 billion to $4 billion, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) announced Tuesday. The move, which is intended to advance the affordable housing missions of the government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs), aligns with the Trump’s administration’s […]
Conventional loans remained the most popular loan type for preapproved borrowers in Q2, increasing their share from 74.2% to 74.7% on a quarterly basis. Preapprovals for Federal Housing Administration (FHA) loans saw a slight decrease in share, from 19% to 18.6%, while U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) loans and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) […]
Executives at Onity Group have managed to preserve “marginal profitability” in their reverse mortgage origination operations, despite ongoing headwinds in the market. “Higher rates for an extended period have limited the amount of benefit a reverse borrower can realize on a new loan,” Sean O’Neil, Onity‘s chief financial officer, said during the company’s second-quarter earnings […]
Housing professionals and consumers have reasons to celebrate this week as the 30-year fixed mortgage rate reached its lowest point of 2025. It’s a particularly interesting development given that the Federal Reserve has yet to cut benchmark rates this year, and mortgage rates could soon move even lower if some policymakers get their way. On […]
Dominick Marchetti and Sean DeJulia, two executives instrumental in developing loanDepot’s mello technology platform, are rejoining the company under the leadership of founder Anthony Hsieh. Their return follows loanDepot’s announcement last week that Hsieh is back in the CEO role permanently. He founded the lender in 2010 and has outlined a renewed focus on returning […]
The Community Home Lenders of America (CHLA) on Tuesday unveiled a tax proposal designed to tap into trillions of dollars of assets locked up by capital gains tax consequences to help children or grandchildren buy their first home. The national nonprofit says that it released the plan after President Trump recently expressed support for changes […]
If you were to ask anyone in the mortgage industry what “1004” means, they would immediately tell you that it is the Fannie Mae appraisal form for single-family homes. How about “1004 C?” That’s their form for manufactured homes and “1073” is their form for condominiums. Freddie Mac uses the same form templates, just with […]
Mortgage applications don’t always fail with a formal rejection — many simply stall. A report released last month by Cotality found that homebuyer hesitation often predicts loan fallout, even without an official withdrawal. As a result, the property analytics firm found that 16% of buyers “ghosted” their mortgage applications last year — a trend attributed […]
UBS Group said on Monday that it will pay $300 million to settle lingering obligations tied to a Credit Suisse deal with the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) over the sales of residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS). UBS inherited the obligations when it acquired Credit Suisse in a 2023 rescue arranged by Swiss regulators. The bank […]
The reverse mortgage market appeared to recover in July after dipping in June, according to Home Equity Conversion Mortgage (HECM) endorsement data compiled by Reverse Market Insight (RMI) that was released late last week. HECM endorsements rose 5.6% in July to 2,369 loans, the highest level recorded since February 2025. HECMs also saw regional gains […]
Texas-based MCS, a property services company that moved into the reverse mortgage space last year, on Monday announced its acquisition of MSI as it seeks to grow its nationwide presence. A press release from the companies said that the deal unites “two of the industry’s market leaders.” MSI’s current employees and services, along with its […]
Frank Cassidy, the principal deputy assistant secretary for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has been nominated to serve as the commissioner of the Federal Housing Administration (FHA). Cassidy has been with HUD since April of this year. Before joining the department, Cassidy was a senior managing director at Walker & Dunlop, […]