For most real estate agents, working with a reliable lending partner is essential to a smooth and successful transaction. “That partnership is everything,” Amy Breach, a Seattle-based Keller Williams agent, told HousingWire in late 2022. “The lender and LO can make or break the transaction.” Finding reliable lending partners takes time and some trial and […]
Loan quality and audit services company QC Ally has appointed Jeffrey Flory as its new chief executive officer, the company said Thursday. The news comes eight months after the appointment of Nicole Booth as as company CEO. She left in August. “I am humbled to take on this role and help bring the company’s vision to […]
Mat Ishbia, president and CEO of United Wholesale Mortgage, has echoed the frustration of mortgage industry experts and leaders with the increased volume of loan buybacks from the government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. In a recorded video distributed on Tuesday, Ishbia claimed the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), which oversees the GSEs, “is going to have to step in […]
United Wholesale Mortgage (UMW) has enhanced its Safe Check program, which provides credit reports without initiating unwanted trigger lead solicitations to brokers’ competitors. In some cases, the lender will provide a hard credit report at no additional cost to borrowers. The program was launched in October 2022 to provide brokers $10 single-bureau soft credit checks for conventional […]
FundingShield, the fintech provider of plug-and-play solutions to manage risk, compliance and fraud prevention, has partnered with Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), a technology services and consulting company. The partnership comes amid an increase in wire and title fraud risk. FundingShield and TCS aim to protect more lenders, homebuyers, sellers from wire and title fraud, both […]
Despite a slight drop in mortgage rates last week, mortgage applications fell to their lowest level since December 1996. For the week that ended Sept. 1, mortgage applications dropped 2.9% from the prior week, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association. “Both purchase and refinance applications fell, with the purchase index hitting a 28-year […]
In the face of spiking interest rates and historically high home prices, $3,000 monthly mortgage payments are common in today’s housing market. According to Black Knight’s mortgage monitor report, the average principal and interest payment among borrowers purchasing a home using a 30-year fixed-rate loan hit its highest point ever in July at $2,306. That’s […]
Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) completed its acquisition of Black Knight Tuesday, making the combined company the biggest player in the mortgage tech space. I sat down with Tim Bowler, president of ICE Mortgage Technology, a business unit of ICE, to talk about the company’s mortgage automation strategy — and what keeps him up at night. Sarah Wheeler: ICE’s acquisition of Black […]
Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) completed its acquisition of Black Knight in a $11.9 billion deal that dragged on more than a year due to antitrust concerns. It’s now easily the biggest player in the mortgage tech space. “Since our founding over 20 years ago, ICE has steadfastly adhered to our founding principle, demonstrated throughout our history, that […]
We had a crazy jobs week last week, with tons of data that the Federal Reserve was happy to see, but did those labor reports mean we’ve hit peak mortgage rates for 2023? Mortgage rates did fall, purchase application data rose and new listings data came back to trend. Weekly active listings rose by only 5,654 […]
New York-based investment firm Cerberus Capital Management has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire home equity lender Spring EQ, the companies announced on Friday. The terms of the deal were not disclosed. The transaction will allow Cerberus executives to realize new opportunities as demand for home equity solutions in the U.S. accelerates. Meanwhile, Spring EQ will be able […]
In its 8th year, the HW Insiders program is spotlighting the talented operations professionals who are laying the foundation of success for their organizations. Through the development of improved and sophisticated systems, protocols and technology, these operations leaders are driving their companies to growth and success. This year 75 honorees were honored as HW Insiders. […]
Pennymac Loan Services and RoundPoint Mortgage Servicing reported this week their customers were exposed to a data breach through the Sovos Compliance software, per filings with the Attorney General in California. Sovos, which provides services to financial companies, said that its vendor Progress Software had a vulnerability in its MOVEit Transfer application on May 31, […]
Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) received the green light to move forward with its acquisition of Black Knight after the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) accepted a binding settlement. Under the agreement, both firms will divest Black Knight’s loan origination system (LOS) Empower business and product and pricing engine (PPE) unit Optimal Blue to a subsidiary of Constellation […]
New York-based asset management firm Sculptor Capital Management said Wednesday it rejected an improved bid from a group of investors. Sculptor said it still prefers the deal with Rithm Capital due to the closing certainty. “The Special Committee has not concluded that the Consortium’s most recent revised proposal constitutes a superior proposal or is reasonably expected to lead to […]
Mortgage rates ticked down modestly after job openings data for July came out yesterday, but rates remain elevated. Freddie Mac‘s Primary Mortgage Market Survey, which focuses on conventional and conforming loans with a 20% down payment, shows the 30-year fixed rate averaged 7.18% as of Aug. 31, down from last week’s 7.23%. By contrast, the […]
NexTier, the holding company of NexTier Bank, will acquire Mars Bancorp, the holding company of Mars Bank. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. The combined company and branch locations will operate under the NexTier Bank brand, both banks said in a release Thursday. With the acquisition, NexTier Bank will have total assets in excess […]
In a letter to a group of founders and shareholders, New York-based asset management firm Sculptor Capital Management said their request to inspect the company’s books and records pertaining to its acquisition by Rithm Capital was “improper” and motivated by founder Daniel Och’s “long-standing resentment” of being exited from the company. Sculptor also said in […]
Freddie Mac on Wednesday announced that company veteran Peter Lillestolen will serve as vice president, production and sales of Targeted Affordable Housing (TAH) at Freddie Mac Multifamily. Lillestolen, a 12-year veteran of the government-sponsored enterprise (GSE), has worked in multifamily in several different roles. He began his career there as an analyst in the Capital […]
HousingWire Lead Analyst Logan Mohtashami appeared on CNBC‘s Squawk on the Street on Wednesday to talk about the health of the housing market, and more specifically about today’s pending home sales data. Mohtashami explained how demand for existing homes is still trending near 21st-century lows. As long as mortgage rates stay near 23-year highs, Mohtashami […]
Digital mortgage lender Better Home & Finance faces a $1.86 million suit for breaching advertising placement agreements with digital and print publisher Meredith Operations Corporation. Better failed to pay for two “insertion orders” – agreements where Meredith would place ads on its digital platforms in exchange for the mortgage lender’s fee – from the summer […]
Mortgage applications for home purchases and refinances increased for the first time in five weeks but remain at low levels. For the week that ended Aug. 25, mortgage applications picked up 2.3% from the prior week, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association. “Mortgage rates were mostly unchanged last week, with the 30-year fixed […]
Mat Ishbia, chairman and chief executive officer at United Wholesale Mortgage (UWM), provided more than half of the mortgage company’s outstanding shares as a guarantee to secure loans ahead of the acquisition of the Phoenix Suns, according to a Bloomberg report. According to the report, Ishbia pledged stock he controls to back two loans that were finalized days before his […]
American Bank of Oklahoma has agreed to invest $1.5 million in credit opportunities for neighborhoods of color in the Tulsa metropolitan area as a settlement with the Department of Justice in an alleged redlining case. The bank denies the allegations. The DOJ complaint, filed in federal court, claims that the bank failed to provide mortgage lending services from 2017 through […]
The ICE — Black Knight merger creates an end-to-end digital infrastructure that will reorder incentives and change how work occurs. New competitive pressures on long protected positions will force many to reinvent operations and rethink the markets they serve. The digital future is unknowable, but we do know that information power moves to consumers, value resides in […]
Non-bank originator Change Lending lost its Community Development Fund Institution (CDFI) certification, according to a report from Barron’s. Change Lending was removed from the CDFI Fund’s list of certified program lenders last week, the outlet reported. Its parent company, The Change Company CDFI, remains as one of the certified program originators. The CDFI certification is […]
Better Home & Finance Holding, the digital lender that debuted on Nasdaq last week, reported a net loss of $135.4 million in the first half of 2023, an improvement from nearly $400 million in the same period last year, according to its 8-K filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Monday. Better is […]
Intercontinental Exchange Inc. (ICE) and Black Knight announced late Friday an agreement with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) for the $11.7 billion merger deal to go through. The settlement comes months after the FTC sued ICE alleging antitrust concerns surrounding a buyout of Black Knight. According to the agreement, ICE is expected to complete the […]
Retail lender Guild Mortgage announced Monday the acquisition of First Centennial Mortgage, a privately-held Illinois-based lender with 15 branches predominantly in the Midwest and a presence in 17 states. The terms of the deal were not disclosed. Guild has been acquiring lenders to expand in local markets in a purchase mortgage-focused environment. Since December 2022, Guild has closed deals with Inlanta Mortgage, Legacy […]
Zillow‘s mortgage arm launched a down payment assistance program where the company will cover 2% of the borrower’s down payment at closing, allowing buyers to pay just 1% upfront. The program is available for eligible borrowers in Arizona and will expand to additional markets, Zillow Home Loans said in a release. The 2% portion of the […]
In a hawkish tone, Jerome Powell said that Federal Reserve (Fed) officials are prepared to raise the federal funds rate further and hold it at high levels until they are confident that inflation is moving sustainably down to the 2% target. And that’s unclear at this point. There are some sources of pressure on U.S. prices — among […]
Homebuyer affordability remained unchanged in July from June, according to Mortgage Bankers Association‘s (MBA) Purchase Applications Payment Index (PAPI). The index measures how new monthly mortgage payments vary across time, relative to income, drawing from data from MBA’s weekly applications survey. The national median payment applied for by purchase applicants was $2,162 in July, up […]
Strong consumption data combined with slowing inflation points to a “soft landing” for the economy, Fannie Mae‘s Economic and Strategic Research (ESR) Group said Thursday. But the government sponsored enterprise still expects a recession next year. “In order to achieve a soft landing, economic growth will have to slow to a rate that is below […]
Mortgage rate shot up again last week as the bond market continues to grapple with a growing economy in the run up to the next Federal Open Market Committee meeting. Investors are concerned that the central bank will continue raising the funds rate, pushing borrowing costs even higher. For many, there is worry that the Fed […]
Rep. Maxine Waters, the ranking member of the House Committee on Financial Services, is concerned about the Federal Trade Commission settlement agreement that will allow Intercontinental Exchange Inc. (ICE) and Black Knight to merge. “In addition to potentially creating a housing finance conglomerate that would dwarf all other players in the industry, I remain concerned […]
New York-based digital lender Better.com announced Wednesday the closing of its business combination with the special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) Aurora Acquisition Corp,, ending a two-year journey to make the business public. Better HoldCo, Inc. and Aurora are creating Better Home & Finance Holding Company, which will have Class A common stock listed on the Nasdaq under the ticker “BETR” starting […]
Two weeks since the first report of a wildfire in Lahaina, Hawaii, the scope of the tragedy is coming into focus. Search teams looked through every single-story residence in the disaster area and found the remains of 115 people. The death toll is likely to grow as teams now look through multi-story residences and commercial […]
Mortgage applications fell for the fifth consecutive week as the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage rose to 7.31%, its highest level since December 2000. For the week that ended August 18, mortgage applications fell 4.2% from the prior week, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association. This decrease in applications comes on the heels of a drastic […]
Foreclosure inventory hit a 15-month low in July representing the continued strength of mortgage performance. Loans in active foreclosure fell to 220,000 – the fewest since just after the end of federal foreclosure moratoria – and were down 63,000 or 22% from February 2020, prior to the pandemic, according to Black Knight’s mortgage performance statistics. […]
The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) and the Consumer Bankers Association (CBA) sent a letter to regulators on Monday warning of the “unintended consequences” of new quality control standards for automated valuation models (AVMs). On June 1, six federal agencies requested comments from the public on a rule designed to ensure the credibility and integrity of models used in real estate […]
The total number of loans now in forbearance decreased by 5 basis points to 0.39% of servicers’ portfolio volume in July from 0.44% May, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) monthly loan monitoring survey. The MBA estimates about 195,000 homeowners are in forbearance plans. Mortgage servicers have provided forbearance to about 7.9 million borrowers […]
Ohio-based lender Union Home Mortgage denied sex discrimination claims made by a former employee whose employment was terminated while she was pregnant. The lender acknowledged employment termination but denied any unlawful conduct. Elizabeth Martin, a former loan officer assistant of UHM, filed suit against the lender alleging sex and/or pregnancy under the Missouri Human Rights […]
The past year hasn’t been particularly good for tech or housing. As a consequence, the number of real estate, mortgage and general housing tech firms to make the annual Inc. Magazine list of the 5,000 fastest growing private companies in America declined in 2023. In all, 37 companies made the cut this year, down from […]
Last week, mortgage rates hit a 21st-century high, the 10-year yield closed slightly higher than my peak forecast for 2023, and housing inventory growth was still slow. Purchase application data didn’t budge much on the week-to-week data. Weekly active listings rose by only 4,401. Mortgage rates went from 7.19%% to 7.37%. Purchase apps were flat […]
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) this week announced a package of regulatory and administrative waivers that will allow the use of HUD funding to assist with the recovery of Maui after the island endured a series of devastating wildfires. The waivers come as thousands of government-backed mortgages on the island have […]