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Nima Ghamsari, CEO and founder of mortgage fintech Blend Labs. ” data-medium-file=”https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/1200x675_Nima_Story_Art_2022.jpg?w=300″ data-large-file=”https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/1200x675_Nima_Story_Art_2022.jpg?w=1024″ width=”1200″ height=”675″ src=”https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/1200x675_Nima_Story_Art_2022.jpg?w=1024″ alt=”1200x675_Nima_Story_Art_2022″ class=”wp-image-344336″ srcset=”https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/1200x675_Nima_Story_Art_2022.jpg 1200w, https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/1200x675_Nima_Story_Art_2022.jpg?resize=150,84 150w, https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/1200x675_Nima_Story_Art_2022.jpg?resize=300,169 300w, https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/1200x675_Nima_Story_Art_2022.jpg?resize=768,432 768w, https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/1200x675_Nima_Story_Art_2022.jpg?resize=1024,576 1024w, https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/1200x675_Nima_Story_Art_2022.jpg?resize=600,338 600w” sizes=”(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px”>Nima Ghamsari, CEO and founder of mortgage fintech Blend Labs. Publicly traded mortgage tech company Blend Labs isn’t changing its strategy to […]

This week’s HW+ member spotlight features Matthew Blanchard, producing sales manager at Academy Mortgage Corporation. Blanchard previously worked art Loan Depot before joining in growing Academy Mortgage Corporation. Standing proudly since 1988, AMC has continued to build and promote a united culture for the lives of their employees, partners, homeowners, and communities. Below, Blanchard answers questions about […]

The HousingWire award spotlight series highlights the individuals who have been recognized through our Editors’ Choice Awards. Nominations for HousingWire’s Women of Influence award are now open through Friday, April 29, 2022. Click here to nominate someone you know — it can even be you! As interest rates continue to climb and mortgage applications decline, […]

After crossing the 5% threshold last week, mortgage rates have provided no indication that they’ll drop below that mark anytime soon. Rates are moving north for the seventh consecutive week, according to the latest Freddie Mac PMMS. Purchase mortgages this week averaged 5.11%, up 11 basis points from 5% a week ago. A year ago at this time, […]

A Department of Veterans Affairs lending program for Native American veterans has been severely underutilized, a government watchdog found. According to a report the Government Accountability Office published this week, the VA’s Native American Direct Loan program only resulted in 89 loans originated in the continental U.S. from 2012 to 2021. This represents less than […]

Fannie Mae has lowered its mortgage origination forecasts for 2022 and 2023 due to the Federal Reserve’s (Fed) aggressive inflation-fighting monetary policy and corresponding volatility in the mortgage market. Fannie’s Economic and Strategic Research (ESR) Group dropped its projected single-family mortgage origination volume for 2022 from $3 trillion to $2.8 trillion. It also downsized the […]

Wholesale lender Homepoint is becoming a broker of sorts…for mortgage brokers. The Ann Arbor, Michigan-based company has launched a referral program aimed at connecting mortgage brokers with regional homebuilders as well as homebuyers. Homepoint’s “New Build program” connects homebuilders with business purpose construction financing through in-region mortgage brokers, with loan amounts up to $4 million […]

At an investor conference last fall, Redwood Trust Inc. CEO Christopher Abate outlined the company’s strategy to expand its reach in existing markets while also seeking out strategic investments in new markets. Those new investments include venture capital plays, particularly in the financial-technology arena. Abate described technology as being key to “building efficiencies” to accomplish the […]

The Federal Housing Administration told mortgage servicers that they can now offer a 40-year loan term as a COVID-19 recovery option. Servicers for FHA-insured mortgages can offer the modification immediately, according to the latest update to FHA’s mortgage lending policies. For now, only borrowers financially impacted by the pandemic can opt for the loss mitigation […]

Bank of America will pay a penalty smaller than the average down payment on a Fannie Mae-backed mortgage, after one of its mortgage loan officers allegedly violated the Fair Housing Act. According to the Department of Housing and Urban Development, Hung Tran, one of the bank’s loan officers at its branch in Fairfield, California, allegedly […]

Publicly traded mortgage tech company Blend Labs laid off 10% of its workforce amid major headwinds in the mortgage industry. In a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Tuesday morning, the Nima Ghamsari-led fintech said its “workforce reduction plan” would eliminate approximately 200 positions across the company. The company, whose white-label technology powers […]

An LO with a client at the closing table ” data-medium-file=”https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/HW-LO-mortgage.png?w=300″ data-large-file=”https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/HW-LO-mortgage.png?w=1024″ width=”1200″ height=”720″ src=”https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/HW-LO-mortgage.png?w=1024″ alt=”HW-LO-mortgage” class=”wp-image-321719″ srcset=”https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/HW-LO-mortgage.png 1200w, https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/HW-LO-mortgage.png?resize=150,90 150w, https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/HW-LO-mortgage.png?resize=300,180 300w, https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/HW-LO-mortgage.png?resize=768,461 768w, https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/HW-LO-mortgage.png?resize=1024,614 1024w, https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/HW-LO-mortgage.png?resize=600,360 600w” sizes=”(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px”> The raison d’etre is the same whether you work as a mortgage loan officer at a depository bank or an independent mortgage […]

Top depositary mortgage lender Wells Fargo & Co. announced this week that it has committed $210 million to advance racial equity in homeownership in the United States, following a Bloomberg investigation that found the bank approved fewer than half of Black applicants for a home refinancing in 2020. Kristy Fercho, CEO of Wells Fargo Home […]

Fannie Mae’s national housing survey from last year found that consumers believe that housing in their area is becoming less affordable and more difficult to find, contributing to their lack of enthusiasm to move. According to the survey conducted in the third quarter of 2021, 69% of participants share these sentiments. This marks a 20-plus […]

Wells Fargo Two of the nation’s largest banks – JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo & Co. – had their mortgage businesses hit hard by the higher interest rate landscape in the first quarter of 2022. The financial institutions reported double-digit declines in origination volume and net earnings from January to March, which were partially offset […]

Fannie Mae generated some buzz last week when it announced it would be accepting written attorney opinion letters in lieu of a title insurance policy “in limited circumstances.” HousingWire wondered: just what were those limited circumstances? According to the government sponsored entity, the only transactions ineligible for an attorney title opinion letter are those that […]

Federal Reserve in Washington, D.C. What happens when the Federal Reserve begins pulling back in a serious way from the mortgage-backed securities (MBS) market that it has helped to prop up through billions of dollars in bond purchases since the start of the pandemic in 2020 — to the point where it now holds a $2.7 trillion agency MBS […]

The 5% threshold has been crossed, and given all the headwinds in the U.S. economy, it doesn’t appear that mortgage rates will be dropping below that mark anytime soon. Purchase mortgages this week averaged 5%, up 28 basis points from 4.72% a week ago, according to the latest Freddie Mac PMMS. A year ago at […]

Consolidation in the mortgage industry is likely in 2022, analysts and lending executives said. ” data-medium-file=”https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/1200x300_Not_all_will_survive_Art_2022-1.jpg?w=300″ data-large-file=”https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/1200x300_Not_all_will_survive_Art_2022-1.jpg?w=1024″ width=”1200″ height=”675″ src=”https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/1200x300_Not_all_will_survive_Art_2022-1.jpg?w=1024″ alt=”1200x300_Not_all_will_survive_Art_2022 (1)” class=”wp-image-345148″ srcset=”https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/1200x300_Not_all_will_survive_Art_2022-1.jpg 1200w, https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/1200x300_Not_all_will_survive_Art_2022-1.jpg?resize=150,84 150w, https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/1200x300_Not_all_will_survive_Art_2022-1.jpg?resize=300,169 300w, https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/1200x300_Not_all_will_survive_Art_2022-1.jpg?resize=768,432 768w, https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/1200x300_Not_all_will_survive_Art_2022-1.jpg?resize=1024,576 1024w, https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/1200x300_Not_all_will_survive_Art_2022-1.jpg?resize=600,338 600w” sizes=”(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px”>Consolidation in the mortgage industry is likely in 2022, analysts and lending executives said. Justin Woodward has […]

Data or network protection, business people press shield icon, virus security. Data protection and insurance Business security concepts, information security against virus. binary number 1010. ” data-medium-file=”https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/AdobeStock_426570472.jpeg?w=300″ data-large-file=”https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/AdobeStock_426570472.jpeg?w=1024″ width=”5538″ height=”3115″ src=”https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/AdobeStock_426570472.jpeg?w=1024″ alt=”Data or network protection, business people press shield icon, virus security. Data protection and insurance Business security concepts, information security against virus. binary number […]

Despite advances in technology, the mortgage industry still lacks efficiency Mortgage executives are aware of a problem: despite billions of dollars in technology investments, the mortgage industry still largely looks like it did two decades ago. After all, it still takes 43 days, on average, to close a loan.  “Realistically, it’s still basically the same […]

Mortgage application volume dropped 1.3% for the week ending on April 8, from the previous week, as mortgage rates eclipsed the 5% mark.  Refinance applications fell 5% from the prior week and 62% from the same week a year ago, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association‘s weekly survey.  “Mortgage rates have spiked more than 1.5 […]

Fast-rising interest rates, up 1.5 percentage points over the past three months, have thrown a wrench into the mortgage origination and private-label securitization markets. Refinancing is plummeting, purchase activity is softening, and rate volatility is making secondary market deals harder to price efficiently across prime and non-prime/non-QM deals.  In the face of all that dour news for […]

Mortgage delinquency rates in January reached a 23-year low, driven by the skyrocketing housing prices and a strong job market. About 3.3% of mortgages were delinquent by at least 30 days or more including foreclosure in January, according to a new CoreLogic loan performance insights report. The figure dropped 2.3 percentage points from 5.6% in […]

Mortgage tech startup Staircase this week launched a blockchain-backed digital infrastructure that it says enables lenders to safely store collected mortgage data while processing mortgages faster.  Philadelphia, Pennsylvania-based Staircase rolled out Amazon Web Service blockchain-based “Staircase Persistence,” which it says helps companies manage data points used by their different customers by grouping data into sets, […]

On Thursday, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported the same trend that all Americans have seen lately: the inflation rate of growth is rampant and doesn’t show any sign of easing up due to the Russian Invasion of Ukraine. The Consumer Price Index for all Urban Consumers “increased 0.8 percent in February on a seasonally […]

In a selling guide announcement released last week, Fannie Mae announced that it would be accepting written opinion letters from an attorney in lieu of a title insurance policy “in limited circumstances.” According to the announcement, lenders “must ensure the loan is covered by either a title policy issued by an acceptable insurer (including any […]

Mortgage origination activity rose last month despite rapidly rising mortgage rates as prospective buyers sought to lock in their loans. Overall origination activity jumped 19% in March from the previous month, led by a 31% increase in purchase loan locks, according to the monthly Mortgage Monitor report from Black Knight. While cash-out refinance activity, which […]

Freddie Mac’s headquarters in Washington, D.C. Freddie Mac has unveiled its third credit risk transfer offering of the year through its Structured Agency Credit Risk (STACR) program. This latest transaction will bring the total note issuance so far in 2022 through STACR to $5.1 billion secured by single-family mortgage reference loan pools valued in total […]

This week’s HW+ member spotlight features Eric Lapin, who was recently appointed chief strategy officer at FormFree. Tapping into more than 25 years of experience, Lapin will strategically identify and execute growth opportunities at FormFree to drive the company forward. Prior to joining FormFree, Lapin served as first vice president of corporate development, national agency services, at Old […]

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s attempt to revive a mortgage servicing misconduct lawsuit against Ocwen Financial Corp. is in choppy waters. On Wednesday, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit ruled that most of the watchdog’s complaints against Ocwen that occurred from January 2014 to Feb. 26, 2017, are prohibited because of a 2014 […]

It’s a depressing combination. A stunning rise in mortgage rates, historically low levels of inventory, and skyrocketing housing prices is fueling consumer pessimism. Fannie Mae‘s Home Purchase Sentiment Index, which tracks the housing market and consumer confidence to sell or buy a home, dropped by 2.1 points to 73.2 in March from the previous month. […]

Mortgage Coach and ReverseVision introduced an online program that allows loan originators to give consumers a comparison of how reverse mortgages perform against traditional mortgages over the lifetime of the loan. Dubbed Reverse TCA, the integrated presentation will enable all loan officers to educate consumers with borrowing terms for reverse mortgages and features such as […]

The pace of deals in the private-label securities market has started to slow as the second quarter of the year gets underway and interest rates continue their upward climb — with rising inflation and the war in Ukraine, which is impacting supply chains, helping to fuel uncertainty over the future.  That’s what it looks like […]

Better.com CEO Vishal Garg ” data-medium-file=”https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/HW-vishal-garg.png?w=300″ data-large-file=”https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/HW-vishal-garg.png?w=1024″ width=”1200″ height=”726″ src=”https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/HW-vishal-garg.png?w=1024″ alt=”HW+ vishal garg” class=”wp-image-330967″ srcset=”https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/HW-vishal-garg.png 1200w, https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/HW-vishal-garg.png?resize=150,91 150w, https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/HW-vishal-garg.png?resize=300,182 300w, https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/HW-vishal-garg.png?resize=768,465 768w, https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/HW-vishal-garg.png?resize=1024,620 1024w, https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/HW-vishal-garg.png?resize=600,363 600w” sizes=”(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px”>Better.com CEO Vishal Garg After becoming the poster child for callous mass layoffs, mortgage originator Better.com has adopted a new approach to reducing its workforce: the […]

Fannie Mae is marketing its 25th sale of reperforming loans since its first offering six years ago and its second sale so far in 2022. The offering is comprised of 7,600 mortgages with total unpaid principal balance of $1.49 billion.  The sale of reperforming loans (RPLs) is being marketed in collaboration with Citigroup Global Markets, with bids due by […]

Nima Ghamsari, CEO and founder of mortgage fintech Blend Labs. ” data-medium-file=”https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/1200x675_Nima_Story_Art_2022.jpg?w=300″ data-large-file=”https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/1200x675_Nima_Story_Art_2022.jpg?w=1024″ width=”1200″ height=”675″ src=”https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/1200x675_Nima_Story_Art_2022.jpg?w=1024″ alt=”1200x675_Nima_Story_Art_2022″ class=”wp-image-344336″ srcset=”https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/1200x675_Nima_Story_Art_2022.jpg 1200w, https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/1200x675_Nima_Story_Art_2022.jpg?resize=150,84 150w, https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/1200x675_Nima_Story_Art_2022.jpg?resize=300,169 300w, https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/1200x675_Nima_Story_Art_2022.jpg?resize=768,432 768w, https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/1200x675_Nima_Story_Art_2022.jpg?resize=1024,576 1024w, https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/1200x675_Nima_Story_Art_2022.jpg?resize=600,338 600w” sizes=”(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px”>Nima Ghamsari, CEO and founder of mortgage fintech Blend Labs. Blend Labs CEO Nima Ghamsari is a betting man. In his early […]

Purchase mortgage rates have risen faster in the last three months than at any time since May 1994, climbing ever closer to the 5% mark due to a combination of rising inflation, the war in Ukraine, and disruptions to the supply chain. And bad news for homebuyers: there’s no sign that they’ll fall anytime soon. The latest weekly Freddie Mac PMMS mortgage […]

Borrowers with Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac-backed mortgages have been granted an additional two months to avoid foreclosure if they’ve applied for assistance from the Department of the Treasury. An announcement by the Federal Housing Finance Agency on Wednesday notified servicers that they must halt foreclosure activities for up to 60 days if a borrower […]

Interest in residential mortgage loans fell 6.25% for the week ending April 1 as rates jumped yet again, ever nearer to 5%, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association‘s latest survey. Refinance applications are in a free fall, as few borrowers these days have an incentive to change their current loans rates. Additionally, home price appreciation and insufficient for-sale […]

Top mortgage lending software and analytics provider Black Knight is exploring a sale following takeover interest from several private equity firms, according to a report from Bloomberg. The Jacksonville, Florida-headquartered firm hasn’t decided whether it would be sold or remain independent, unnamed sources told the financial news publication. Black Knight’s stock, like many in the […]

Atlanta-based non-QM wholesale lender Angel Oak Mortgage Solutions has updated its rate lock policy to a 30-day lock period due to the fast-rising interest rates landscape. “Angel Oak, along with the rest of the non-QM industry, has been forced to make rapid adjustments to ensure liquidity during this highly volatile market,” a company spokesperson told […]

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau chimed in on an appeal to the McCoy vs. Wells Fargo Bank case, arguing that a borrower should be able to get information about their loan from their loan servicer. The CFPB filed its amicus brief on Monday, in a class action lawsuit before the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, […]

Fannie Mae has priced its fourth Connecticut Avenue Series (CAS) credit-risk transfer deal of 2022, a $1.14 billion note offering backed by a reference pool of some 118,000 single-family mortgages valued at $36 billion. The offering is slated to close April 8, according to a presale review by the Kroll Bond Rating Agency (KBRA) and involves transferring […]

The Federal Housing Administration (FHA) took a definitive, if procedural, step toward a Senate-confirmed commissioner this morning. In a morning session, the Senate narrowly voted to advance Julia Gordon’s nomination to be federal housing commissioner. Vice President Kamala Harris’ vote broke a tie, placing Gordon’s nomination on the Senate calendar. Senate leadership can now call […]