The spread on mortgage-backed securities (MBS) trouble many industry professionals, and at a recent roundtable discussion, it spurred an interesting discussion on the degree of risk being absorbed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. At policy panels held by the Community Home Lenders of America (CHLA) on Monday in Washington, D.C., former Federal Housing Financing […]
Home equity solutions provider Unison launched a new product on Tuesday that combines the features of traditional mortgage financing and emerging home equity investment (HEI) options. The San Francisco-based Unison calls its new offering the Equity Sharing Home Loan. The company explained that the product operates as a ”hybrid between debt and equity.” It’s initially […]
Anthony Casa, President & CEO of UMortgage, isn’t mincing words when it comes to the lending practices that often victimize our veterans. “Our veterans deserve better. Unfortunately, it’s far too common for lenders to prioritize their own profits over the financial well-being of those who have served our country,” Casa shares. “These lenders take advantage […]
At the end of August, Guild Mortgage announced a suite of products under the name “Flex Payment Mortgage,” which includes Home Equity Conversion Mortgage (HECM) reverse mortgage products alongside refinances, proprietary jumbo options and HECM for Purchase (H4P) loans. Jim Cory, managing director of Guild’s reverse division, previously spoke with HousingWire’s Reverse Mortgage Daily (RMD) […]
The country’s largest wholesale lender, United Wholesale Mortgage (UWM), has launched a broker training program that will teach individuals to become licensed mortgage originators. Dubbed “BrokerX,” the five-week program will provide existing brokers with a “streamlined solution” for training and licensing new talent without the use of their own training team. UWM announced the move […]
In what has become a familiar fall ritual, mortgage lenders are increasing their conforming loan limits months ahead of the FHFA’s official announcement. On Friday, Pennymac joined Rocket Pro TPO in announcing an increase in their conforming loan limit to $802,650 — before the expected increase by the FHFA in November. Pennymac’s increase will be […]
At the end of August, the District of Columbia Housing Finance Agency (DCHFA) announced that it had relaunched its Reverse Mortgage Insurance & Tax Payment Program (ReMIT), which originally began in 2019 and expanded in 2020 before being halted at the end of 2021. Tikisha Wilson, director of single-family programs at DCHFA, sat down with […]
The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) released a new report that estimates the benefit payment schedule of the Social Security program, saying that the Old-Age and Survivors Insurance (OASI) Trust Fund will “decline to zero” in fiscal year 2034 and the Disability Insurance (DI) Trust Fund will do the same in 2064. The report is based […]
The Federal Housing Administration (FHA) this week published a newly proposed Mortgagee Letter on its Single Family Drafting Table, which would align mortgage borrowers and originators in their understanding of how much is owed on a partial claim. Partial claims are designed to offer assistance to mortgage borrowers who have fallen behind on their monthly […]
Buffalo, New York-based mortgage technology firm LenderLogix, a top provider of point-of-sale (POS) and automation software for independent mortgage banks, commercial banks and third-party brokers, announced Thursday that Ben Head will join the company as an account executive. Head will be responsible for expanding the firm’s market share as he moves over from Enact Mortgage […]
Allies of former President Donald Trump are developing plans to move government-sponsored enterprises Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac out of federal conservatorship, a long-sought goal of certain politicians and a move that would have a notable impact on the mortgage finance industry. The news was first reported by the The Wall Street Journal (WSJ). “Former […]
Rocket Pro TPO, the wholesale arm of Rocket Mortgage, upped its agency conforming loan limits to $802,650 in 48 states, ahead of an announcement by the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) that is expected in November. For Alaska and Hawaii, the ceiling on loans originated by Rocket Pro TPO and purchased by Fannie Mae and […]
The parties involved in a lawsuit between Texas Capital Bank (TCB), the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and Ginnie Mae over a dispute involving Home Equity Conversion Mortgage (HECM)-backed Securities (HMBS) have been advised to be ready for a trial in September 2025. This is according to court filings reviewed by HousingWire’s […]
Baby boomers are a key constituency for the reverse mortgage industry since they are currently the generation with the largest share of the population at or above the age of 62. A recent SmartAsset analysis of 2023 Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) pinpointed where boomers are most active within the U.S. housing market. “Retirement often […]
Lower mortgage rates over the past several months have led to increased affordability for prospective homebuyers, and this could lead to an extra competitive fall 2024 season. That’s according to a Zillow report released Thursday in which the Seattle-based real estate company said that “lower mortgage rates and rising inventory are giving home buyers a […]
Home equity continued to rise in the second quarter of 2024 as residential properties with mortgages collectively gained $1.3 trillion in equity over the past year. But growth began to slow during these three months, according to the CoreLogic Homeowner Equity Insights report published on Thursday. The aggregate equity gain was 8% year over year, […]
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has ordered TD Bank to pay $28 million for illegal actions that could tarnish consumer credit reports and for not taking timely action to correct its errors. The CFPB’s investigation found that for several years, TD Bank repeatedly gave inaccurate account information to consumer reporting companies, which at times […]
First launched in April of 2020, the Pass-Through Assistance Program (PTAP) was an important initiative designed to provide mortgage servicers with the liquidity needed to endure the financial challenges due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As millions of borrowers struggled to meet their mortgage payments, PTAP served as a lifeline, ensuring that servicers could meet their […]
ICE Mortgage Technology will be sunsetting legacy integrations for its flagship Encompass platform by Oct. 31, 2025, which will modernize the mortgage market even if some vendors have to go kicking and screaming. In an email to partners on Tuesday, ICE said that it will be closing down the Encompass SDK (Software Development Kit) on […]
California-based mortgage lender loanDepot appointed Nancy Smith to lead its Colorado and Wyoming branches as regional vice president of in-market retail. Smith will be responsible for growing sales volume in Colorado, which has the sixth-fastest percentage rate of population growth of all states, and Wyoming, a market traditionally underserved by independent mortgage banks, loanDepot said […]
CMG Home Loans, the retail lending division of CMG Financial, recently made a key hire in its reverse mortgage division by adding industry veteran Kari Van Kleef as its operations manager. The move comes as the company broadens its ambitions for the reverse mortgage division, aiming to put its 1,400 traditional mortgage originators to work […]
By this point, the information should be second nature: Aging in place is an increasingly common desire among homeowners who want to save money, avoid costly assisted-living facilities, stay connected to their communities or all of the above. As the preference grows, one group — homebuilders — is uniquely positioned to address these desires and […]
Mortgage rates have declined for six straight weeks, pushing loan application volume up 1.4% during the week ending Sept. 6, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA). The MBA’s survey — which covers 75% of all retail residential mortgage applications in the U.S. — found that the seasonally adjusted refinance index increased 1% from the […]
As the mortgage industry continues to evolve at breakneck speed, risk management has never been a more critical lynchpin in the lending ecosystem. At the vanguard stands Mortgage Connect Risk Solutions (MCRS), formerly Adfitech, a leader in risk management, quality control, third-party reviews, and due diligence, known for protecting mortgage lenders and investors from the […]
Tuesday night’s presidential debate — which could be the only one of this election cycle between the Democratic and Republican nominees for the highest office in the land this November — featured a spate of fiery moments between the two candidates. Housing, which has become an issue of focus in the campaign, was mentioned a […]
In a little more than a week, Federal Reserve policymakers are poised to lower benchmark interest rates for the first time since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Ahead of that decision, mortgage rates continued to decline, although a surge of borrowers has yet to appear. At HousingWire‘s Mortgage Rates Center on Tuesday, the average […]
In a traditional sense, the term “silver tsunami” refers to pent-up housing stock that older homeowners will eventually choose to sell, which would have the effect of flooding the market with new inventory. But if prior suppositions about this trend being overblown failed to convince people, new data might make things clearer. More than half […]
Rocket Companies, the parent of Rocket Mortgage, has set ambitious goals to increase market share by 2027 using its multichannel reach, its origination and servicing flywheel, and its advanced technology platform. Rocket aims to double its current market share in purchase mortgages from 4% to 8% and expand its refinance share from 12% to 20%, executives […]
Michael Barr, the Federal Reserve‘s vice chair for supervision, on Tuesday spoke at the Brookings Institution in Washington, D.C., about the 2023 Basel III Endgame proposal, which would modify risk-based capital requirements for large banks. Following an extensive review process that included stakeholder comments in the intervening time — including what Barr called “productive meetings […]
Mortgage capital markets technology firm Polly has raised $25 million to invest in research and development, product innovation and expansion, the company said on Tuesday. 8VC led the latest equity investment with participation from existing investors Menlo Ventures, Meritech, Khosla Ventures and Fifth Wall. Polly has increased its locked loan volume by more than 150% […]
After several months of searching, Freddie Mac has found a new CEO, announcing on Tuesday the hiring of former PNC Financial Services executive Diana Reid. The government-sponsored enterprise (GSE) had been without a permanent CEO since March, when Michael DeVito retired after three years on the job. Michael Hutchins took over the role on an […]
The mortgage industry has complained loudly and often that government regulation and investor requirements are contributing to spiraling costs that get passed on to consumers. And Rohit Chopra, the hard-charging director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, who is often the target of such complaints, apparently agrees. At least when it comes to redundancies with […]
Last week, Guild Mortgage announced a suite of products under the name “Flex Payment Mortgage.” The brand includes Home Equity Conversion Mortgage (HECM) reverse mortgage products alongside refinances, proprietary jumbo options and HECM for Purchase (H4P) loans. After acquiring the robust reverse mortgage division of Cherry Creek Mortgage in early 2023, Guild has used its […]
Better Home & Finance Holding Co., the parent of digital lender Better.com, rolled out its Federal Housing Administration (FHA) streamline refinance program on Monday. The product is available for qualified borrowers with an existing FHA loan who are looking to lower their monthly mortgage payment, reduce their interest rate, shorten their loan term or get […]
Publicly traded real estate software firm reAlpha Tech Corp. added mortgage lending under its umbrella by acquiring mortgage brokerage company Be My Neighbor on Monday. reAlpha agreed to pay Be My Neighbor an aggregate purchase price of up to $6 million. This consists of $1.5 million in cash paid on the closing date, $1.5 million […]
Mortgage rates remained flat following a jobs report on Friday that continued to show a cooling labor market. Mortgage rate pricing for homebuyers hasn’t changed significantly as lenders have already priced in a Federal Reserve rate cut of 25 basis points (bps) that is expected later this month, loan originators told HousingWire. Kevin Leibowitz, president […]
Aging in place continues to be the preference for the vast majority of older Americans. But the financial and emotional ramifications of staying in one’s current home, rather than moving to a nursing home or assisted-living facility, can be a heavy burden. The Wall Street Journal highlighted aging-in-place issues this week by interviewing several families […]
The reverse mortgage industry is pressing ahead with a chance at lower interest rates later this month. While there were signs of weakness in performance metrics in August, there are also commensurate signs of encouragement, according to industry experts. Home Equity Conversion Mortgage (HECM) endorsements fell by 3.3% from July to August, with the total […]
In an industry where managing a web of technology vendors to support LO’s sales and marketing needs has become overwhelmingly complex, inefficient and creates unnecessary security and compliance risks, CANDID is quickly becoming a leader in transforming how mortgage lenders operate. With its new partnership with Atlantic Bay Mortgage Group, CANDID is set to make […]
The Consumer Federation of America (CFA) is calling for policy changes that would help alleviate the difficulties for homebuyers using Federal Housing Administration (FHA) loans when competing in tight markets. Buyers using FHA loans often face stigmas and cannot use many of the competitive strategies commonly utilized by conventional borrowers and cash buyers, according to […]
Dan Snyder rarely steps into the spotlight, but his name, strategic moves and execution are talked about frequently in mortgage banking circles. This changes on Oct. 1, 2024, when Snyder, the CEO of Lower, steps on to the main stage at the George W. Bush Presidential Library in Dallas for the HousingWire IMB Summit. A […]
Retirement in America comes with a lot of concerns related to finances and health, with both of these issues often being intertwined. Long-term care is emerging as a key concern for older Americans, especially since its costs will most likely need to be covered from a fixed income. This is one reason why home equity […]
U.S. home-price growth is predicted to finish this year at 4.7% before slowing to 3.1% in 2025, according to a quarterly survey of housing experts conducted by government-sponsored enterprise (GSE) Fannie Mae. The third-quarter 2024 survey polled more than 100 mortgage, real estate and academic experts to determine its predictions in partnership with data analytics […]
Mortgage lender and servicer OCMBC has acquired HomeStar Financial Corp., marking a significant expansion across the country. The acquisition formally closed on Aug. 29, OCMBC announced Thursday. The terms of the deal were not disclosed. “Their extensive experience in servicing and their commitment to providing outstanding customer service align perfectly with our values at OCMBC,” […]
With elevated levels of home equity across the U.S., mortgage lenders are making home equity lending more accessible to reach more borrowers. Nearly all of the companies analyzed that provide home equity lending have a digital application process, while about half incorporate a soft credit pull before they fully underwrite these loans, according to a […]