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HW+ Member Spotlight: Tammy Richards

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This week’s HW+ member spotlight features Tammy Richards, CEO at LendArch. She has held leadership positions at Bank of America and Caliber Home Loans, and most recently served as chief operating officer at loanDepot. Below, Richards answers questions about the housing industry: HousingWire: What is your current favorite HW+ article and why? Tammy Richards: I love the research and data. […]

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Opinion: Forgiving student loan debt boosts homeownership

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Last month, President Joe Biden announced the federal government would forgive hundreds of billions of dollars of student loans. I believe this initiative is one of the most consequential administrative actions for housing in a generation. It could make homeownership accessible for millions of new homebuyers. The student loan debt forgiveness decision has provoked a broad range of […]

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Mortgage demand falters as rates inch past 7%

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Demand for mortgage loans dropped following the Fed’s decision to raise interest rates by an additional 75 basis points last week. The market composite index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, declined 3.7% for the week ending September 23, compared to the previous week. It was also down 66% compared to the same week […]

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 MAXEX seeks to capitalize on expanding non-QM market

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MAXEX, a major mortgage trading and aggregating platform, has unveiled a series of new programs designed to serve originators and loan buyers in the growing non-QM lending market. The increasing demand for non-QM loans (more broadly defined as nonprime) has run up against market volatility, as mortgage rates have doubled since late last year. That […]

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FHFA OIG addresses executive compensation controversy

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The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) Office of the Inspector General on Wednesday said the agency has not adequately defined the rules and scope of its executive compensation practices. The OIG concluded that the agency should update its rules and procedures and determine if it has enough staff to vet executive compensation decisions. The evaluation […]

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 Pennymac hires chief mortgage innovation officer

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Pennymac Financial Services named longtime industry veteran Jerry Halbrook as its new chief mortgage innovation officer. Halbrook, who announced his new position via LinkedIn on Monday, brings more than 25 years of experience in mortgages. The company didn’t provide comment regarding Halbrook’s hire. The executive was most recently chief executive officer at mortgage marketing firm […]

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Prestwick adding more fuel to a hot MSR market

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Advisory and brokerage firm Prestwick Mortgage Group is out with three new mortgage-servicing rights (MSR) offerings for agency loan pools valued in total at $2.6 billion. One of those MSR offerings involves a Ginnie Mae loan pool of 7,591 mortgages with valued at $2 billion based on the unpaid principal balance. The package is being marketed with […]

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Blend strikes partnership deal with PNC Bank

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Despite steep financial losses, mortgage tech company Blend continues to add some of America’s largest mortgage lenders to its client roster. On Tuesday, the fintech and PNC Bank announced a partnership that allows customers to digitally apply for a mortgage and import bank/payroll information directly into their application. Once an application is submitted, customers have […]

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Fannie Mae launches rent payment reporting pilot program

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Fannie Mae on Tuesday launched a pilot program to help renters of multifamily properties build their credit histories and improve their credit scores. Effective Sept. 27, eligible multifamily property owners can share rent payment data through a vendor network to TransUnion, Equifax, and Experian in the renter’s credit profile. “Around 20% of the U.S. population […]

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Mortgage delinquency rate nears historic low

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The overall mortgage delinquency rate declined to 2.79% in August from 3.6% in July, according to a report by Black Knight. The delinquency rate is just 4 basis points above the historic low of 2.75% in May 2022. August saw 20,300 foreclosure starts, a 15% rise from July, but remained 44% below August 2019, holding […]

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BayFirst National Bank withdraws from residential mortgage business

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Higher mortgage rates, lower volume and fiercer competition forced BayFirst National Bank to shut down its residential mortgage business and lay off staffers. BayFirst Financial Corp., the parent company of BayFirst National Bank, announced last week that its board of directors started the process of closing the bank’s nationwide network of residential mortgage loan production […]

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Thrive Mortgage to acquire American Mortgage Service Company

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Texas-based independent mortgage bank Thrive Mortgage has signed a letter of intent to acquire the Ohio-based lender American Mortgage Service Company (AMSC). Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. The acquisition will strengthen Thrive’s retail channel and bring with it new territories amidst arguably the most challenging mortgage market since the early 1980s.   Thrive’s […]

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Opinion: CRA doesn’t work for banks or IMBs

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Last year, in a Housing Wire op-ed, Community Home Lenders of America took the lead nationally in opposing calls to extend the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) to independent mortgage banks (IMBs).  The National Community Reinvestment Coalition (NCRC) then returned the volley in an op-ed by Jesse Van Tol advocating for extending CRA to IMBs. And HousingWire […]

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Freddie Mac rolls out agency’s 10th STACR note offering

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Freddie Mac is launching its 10th credit-risk transfer transaction of the year via its Structured Agency Credit Risk (STACR) program, bringing the total note offerings through its two flagship STACR series programs to $12.8 billion so far in 2022. The new credit risk transfer (CRT) offering, STACR 2022-DNA7, outlined in a presale report by Kroll Bond Rating […]

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Mortgage rates might soar even higher

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Mortgage rates house, resize ” data-medium-file=”https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/AdobeStock_7907098.jpeg?w=300″ data-large-file=”https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/AdobeStock_7907098.jpeg?w=1024″ width=”1200″ height=”800″ src=”https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/AdobeStock_7907098.jpeg?w=1024″ alt=”resize” class=”wp-image-264916″ srcset=”https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/AdobeStock_7907098.jpeg 1200w, https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/AdobeStock_7907098.jpeg?resize=150,100 150w, https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/AdobeStock_7907098.jpeg?resize=300,200 300w, https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/AdobeStock_7907098.jpeg?resize=768,512 768w, https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/AdobeStock_7907098.jpeg?resize=1024,683 1024w, https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/AdobeStock_7907098.jpeg?resize=600,400 600w” sizes=”(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px”>Mortgage rates, now around 6.5%, are cooling down the housing market and triggering mass layoffs in the mortgage and real estate industries. Mortgage rates have nearly doubled to […]

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Meet the HousingWire Annual Welcome Committee: Haley Parker

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Haley Parker is the area business development manager at Fairway Independent Mortgage Corporation. She sat down with HousingWire to share her excitement for the upcoming HousingWire Annual conference and her role on the welcome committee.  HousingWire:  What are you most looking forward to at HW Annual 2022?   Haley Parker: Networking and connecting with Industry friends! […]

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Fannie Mae prices ninth CAS note offering of 2022

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Fannie Mae has launched its ninth Connecticut Avenue Series (CAS) credit-risk transfer deal of 2022, a $$591 million note offering backed by a reference pool of single-family mortgages.  The transaction, CAS 2022-RO9, involves a reference pool of 96,000 single-family mortgages with an outstanding principal balance of $29.3 billion. The loans in the reference pool have loan-to-value ratios […]

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Hot home-equity market fueling securitization deals

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New York-based Unlock Technologies, a fintech operating in the shared-equity market, and real estate investment firm Saluda Grade, have closed a $180 million private-label securitization (PLS) backed entirely by Unlock-originated residential home-equity agreements (HEAs). The PLS transaction, called UNLOK 2022-1, involves $144 million of unrated senior Class A notes, $18 million of mezzanine Class B securities and $18 […]

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How LOs are dealing with a mortgage rate lockdown

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Mortgage rates in the 6% range have frozen the housing market, forcing loan officers to find business outside their wheelhouses. ” data-medium-file=”https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/1200x700_forsale-empty-neighborhood.png?w=300″ data-large-file=”https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/1200x700_forsale-empty-neighborhood.png?w=1024″ width=”1200″ height=”700″ src=”https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/1200x700_forsale-empty-neighborhood.png?w=1024″ alt=”1200x700_forsale-empty-neighborhood” class=”wp-image-363570″ srcset=”https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/1200x700_forsale-empty-neighborhood.png 1200w, https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/1200x700_forsale-empty-neighborhood.png?resize=150,88 150w, https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/1200x700_forsale-empty-neighborhood.png?resize=300,175 300w, https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/1200x700_forsale-empty-neighborhood.png?resize=768,448 768w, https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/1200x700_forsale-empty-neighborhood.png?resize=1024,597 1024w, https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/1200x700_forsale-empty-neighborhood.png?resize=600,350 600w” sizes=”(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px”>Mortgage rates in the 6% range have frozen the housing market, forcing […]

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Angel Oak launches 6th securitization deal this year

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Atlanta-based non-QM lender Angel Oak Cos., through its mortgage-backed securities conduit Angel Mortgage Trust, has unveiled its sixth private-label securities (PLS) offering of 2022, even as fast-rising interest rates have jumped far ahead of the lower-rate legacy loans securing the deal. The average coupon is 5% for the pool of 795 non-qualified (non-QM) mortgages backing the current […]

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How a small lender is navigating the turbulent market

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Delray Beach, Florida-based mortgage lender ResMac, Inc., like many others, has trimmed its workforce so its cost structure is in line with reduced origination volume. The company is focused on expanding beyond residential loans amid a price war and surging rates. To grow in the coming years, it seeks to raise capital. It’s all part […]

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Mortgage rate volatility affecting pace of new home sales

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New home purchase applications in August were down year over year but rebounded after four consecutive months of declines despite higher mortgage rates, declining homebuilder sentiment and looming economic uncertainty, the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) said. The MBA’s builder application survey (BAS) data for August showed mortgage applications for new home purchases declined 10.1% from […]

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Ginnie Mae forbearance rate increases in August

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Servicers’ forbearance rate declined in August, excepting for Ginnie Mae loans, the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) reported Monday. The trade group expects pressure in the coming months if the unemployment rate increases.  The total number of loans in forbearance decreased two basis points from the previous month to 0.72% of the servicers’ total portfolio volume in August, positive news […]

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Top 25 lenders increased market share in 2021: HMDA

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A perfect lending storm spurred by the pandemic resulted in an absolutely stunning year for the mortgage industry in 2020. Top lenders who were able to quickly build capacity and take advantage of near-zero interest rates were rewarded with an increase in market share. Those trends largely continued in 2021, even though refi business slowed […]

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SPS to acquire Rushmore Loan Management Services assets

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Select Portfolio Servicing Inc. (SPS) has struck a deal to acquire certain assets of Texas-based Rushmore Loan Management Services LLC. The deal, announced Monday, will result in Salt Lake City-based SPS acquiring Rushmore’s servicing personnel. The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2022, subject to regulatory approvals. Terms of the deal were not […]

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Fannie Mae picks winners of 4th RPL sale of 2022

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Fannie Mae has completed the sale of its 27th reperforming-loan offering since the inaugural transaction in 2016. The deal represents Fannie Mae’s fourth reperforming-loan sale this year and involves a total of some 6,060 loans valued at $986.4 million. The offering — originally announced August 11 and dubbed FNMA 2022-RPL4 — was divided into three loan pools that were […]

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Dalila Ramos to speak at HW Annual

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Having open and honest conversations around how to navigate your personal and professional life is more important than ever, as everyone works to find harmony in their life. At HW Annual on Oct. 3, Dalila Ramos, founder of Love and Tacos Media, will lead a session on work life balance, addressing the realities that many […]

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Progress Residential unveils 36th private-label SFR offering 

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Another single-family rental (SFR) securitization deal sponsored by a large institutional player, Progress Residential, is slated to hit the private-label market this month, bringing the total securitization-deal count for Progress to seven so far this year. This latest transaction, Progress 2022-SFR7, will be secured by a single $426.8 million fixed-rate loan backed by mortgages on 1,434 […]

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Mortgage rates rise ahead of expected Fed rate hike

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The latest weekly survey data from Freddie Mac shows the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage rose to an average of 6.02% this week ahead of the Federal Reserve’s much-anticipated interest rate hike next week. Daily mortgage rate calculators are showing 30-year fixed rates at 6.30% and above. A year ago at this time, rates averaged 2.86%.   […]