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Summary List Placement Senate Democrats are weighing whether to combine an infrastructure bill and coronavirus relief legislation into a single, massive multi-trillion-dollar package that could pass without Republican votes, two Democratic aides familiar with the discussions tell Insider.  The ongoing talks reflect a desire among Democrats to swiftly capitalize on their new Senate majority with […]

Summary List Placement As the pandemic plunged America’s economy into turmoil last March, Jerome Powell, the Federal Reserve chairman, rushed to prop it back up with a series of programs. A policy that the Fed pioneered during the 2008 Great Recession known as quantitative easing, in which the country essentially buys its own debt, worked by making […]

United Wholesale Mortgage (UWM) unveiled a new policy this week, telling brokers that appraisals will be completed within 10 business days or they’ll refund 50% of the appraisal cost back to the customer. The initiative, called “Appraisal Promise,” drops just a week before the wholesale lender’s Wall Street debut on Jan. 22. UWM is merging […]

Summary List Placement Achieving herd immunity and bringing the coronavirus in check won’t resolve all of the pandemic’s economic damage, Carmen Reinhart, chief economist at the World Bank, said Tuesday. What began as a health crisis is creating “your classic balance sheet problems” and risks plunging the world into a dire financial crisis, Reinhart said […]

It took a few years, but Victor Ciardelli has finally captured the one that got away. The founder and CEO of Guaranteed Rate, which originated $73 billion in mortgages last year, has made joint ventures and acquisitions a cornerstone of his growing business. In 2017, Guaranteed Rate struck a deal with the largest real estate brokerage […]

Mortgage applications jumped 16.7% after a 4.2% drop last week, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. The jump underlines the seasonality behind last week’s decrease in mortgage rates, as well as the expectation of additional fiscal stimulus from the incoming administration, per MBA Associate Vice President of Economic and Industry Forecasting Joel Kan. “Booming refinance […]

Summary List Placement Senate Democrats are beginning to lay out their legislative agenda for the year as the party barrels toward a second impeachment of President Donald Trump in the final days of his term. “The nation is facing unprecedented challenges: the greatest economic crisis in seventy-five years, the greatest public health crisis in a […]

Appraisal software company Reggora today announced the completion of a $30 million Series B funding round, led by returning investor Spark Capital. Other investors included Shine Capital, Greenpoint Partners, Boston Seed and 1984. The company snagged $10 million in a February Series A funding round, bringing the company’s total capital to $45 billion. The company […]

Summary List Placement US job openings dipped in November as businesses continued to hire workers amid the worsening coronavirus pandemic. Openings dropped by 105,000 to about 6.5 million through November, according to Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, or JOLTS, data published Tuesday. The reading met the 6.5 million openings forecasted by economists surveyed by […]

Summary List Placement A popular gauge of small-business confidence in the US sank to a seven-month low in December as stricter lockdown measures and climbing daily case counts cut into economic activity. The National Federation of Independent Businesses’ index of small-business optimism fell 5.5 points last month to 95.9, according to a Tuesday release. The […]

The moment has finally arrived: California-based lender loanDepot has filed an updated S-1 with the Securities and Exchanges Commission and plans to go public in 2021. The company, founded by billionaire entrepreneur Anthony Hsieh, said Monday that its affiliate loanDepot Inc. had confidentially filed paperwork, but it hasn’t determined how much stock will be sold […]

The U.S. forbearance rate fell seven basis points last week to 5.46% of servicer’s portfolio volume, according to a survey from the Mortgage Bankers Association on Monday. As of last week’s data set, forbearance portfolio share is now below numbers Black Knight reported in mid-April of 2020. Every investor class managed to see a decline in rate, […]

Rocket Homes Real Estate, a real estate affiliate of Rocket Companies, is being investigated by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) for possibly violating the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA) when it charged fees for referring Quicken’s mortgage clients to real estate agents, according to officials. Syndicated columnist Lew Sichelman reported Sunday that Dmitry […]

Even with total credit risk transfers (CRT) and non-QM lending trending down due to seasonality, some observers are predicting a strong beginning to 2021. Officials with dvo1, a lending markets analytics company, remain encouraged by low levels of new impairments, which reached pre-pandemic levels in both CRT and non-QM. Vadim Verkhoglyad, dv01 vice president and […]

Summary List Placement Lori Jay spent the past four years working as a rideshare driver in Maui. The 66-year-old was part of the gig economy, relying on a steady stream of tourists for her income. “We used to joke kiddingly to each other, everybody here, ‘What happens when the ships stop coming?’” Jay told Insider.  […]

Summary List Placement The US posted a surprise decline in payrolls in December and all of the 140,000 jobs lost were held by women, according to data. Analysts had expected an uptick in employment in December but instead American businesses shed 140,000 nonfarm payroll. The country’s unemployment rate stayed steady at 6.7%, according to data […]

This is the fifth installment of our economist Q&A series, as we work to answer the top 2021 housing market questions for our HW+ members. Every Tuesday in December, HousingWire interviewed a top economist in the HW+ Slack channel. In each Q&A, we attempt to bring clarity to the top questions around housing supply shortages […]

Correspondent and wholesale lender Homepoint is the latest mortgage company to aim for an IPO. The Ann Arbor, Michigan-based lender filed an S-1 with the Securities and Exchanges Commission on Friday afternoon. The company indicated in the S-1 that its price offering was $100 million, generally a placeholder for a larger offering. In its S-1, […]

Summary List Placement The United States lost 140,000 jobs in December. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported the surprising dip in nonfarm payroll jobs on Friday. As Insider’s Ben Winck reported, economists had actually anticipated that 50,000 jobs would be added. It’s the first decline in a jobs report since April, showing how the recovery […]

For many of us, the start of a new year is usually synonymous with a renewed sense of professional self, focusing on new goals, new prospects for the year and, of course, the excitement for the upcoming spring real estate market. As we think about coming out of this first month of the year, we’ve […]

Months after taking over management of broker LOS platform ARIVE, mortgage software startup LendWize has finalized a deal to take complete ownership of the origination platform. LendWize took over management of the platform in early 2020 and integrated ARIVE’s software into its own technology stack. It launched a revised version of the ARIVE platform in […]

Summary List Placement The US economy saw a surprise decline in payrolls in December as stricter COVID-19 lockdown measures extended the nation’s unemployment crisis into the new year. American businesses shed 140,000 nonfarm payrolls last month, the Bureau of Labor Statistics said Friday. The reading defies consensus economist estimates that foresaw 50,000 job additions, according […]

After three consecutive weeks of increases, the number of mortgage loans in active forbearance fell by 92,000 the first week of 2021, according to a Friday report from Black Knight. This was a 3% drop and the greatest week-over-week decline since early November, largely driven by quarterly forbearance plans reaching their expiration. Black Knight now estimates […]

Summary List Placement Taxpayers will foot the bill for damage caused to the US Capitol from Wednesday’s violent mob attack because the site isn’t covered by insurance, industry sources told Reuters. It’s unknown how much it cost to clean and repair damage to the building in Washington, DC, which was vandalized during the attack after […]

Summary List Placement Does it feel like a dollar buys less than it used to? You’re not imagining things. “It’s inflation,” people sigh.  You probably have a rough idea of what inflation means. The cost of things is going up.  But what is inflation really, what causes it, and how does it affect your finances? […]

2021 was supposed to be different. In the first days of the New Year, we have been dealing with a new strain of COVID, vaccinations aren’t going as planned and the political drama is hotter than ever. It was starting to seem like 2020 all over again. But it is different. On Jan. 5 the […]

Summary List Placement A top gauge of the US service sector unexpectedly improved in December as the holiday season brought an influx of new orders and boosted business activity. The Institute for Supply Management’s services index climbed to 57.2 from 55.9 last month, according to a Thursday press release. The reading is the highest since […]

The average U.S. mortgage rate for a 30-year fixed loan fell two basis points this week to 2.65% – the lowest rate in the Freddie Mac’s Primary Mortgage Market Survey’s near 50-year history. This week’s mortgage rate broke the previous record set on Dec. 24. With this week’s record drop, there have now been 22 consecutive weeks when average mortgage […]

Summary List Placement The number of Americans filing for unemployment insurance dipped slightly last week as the coronavirus’s economic fallout dragged the unemployment crisis into the new year. New US jobless claims totaled an unadjusted 787,000 for the week that ended Saturday, the Labor Department said Thursday. Economists surveyed by Bloomberg expected 800,000 claims. The […]

Mortgage tech is already off to the races, with companies introducing new digital products early in 2021. Digital mortgage platformer Blend is back this week, announcing that they are furthering their Freddie Mac partnership by integrating the GSE’s automated underwriting system, Loan Product Advisor. With the integration, Blend will have access to the companies Dual […]

To generate buzz for its upcoming independent public offering, United Wholesale Mortgage (UWM) is offering a special deal on conventional mortgage loans to select borrowers for the next two months. “We’re going to celebrate this exciting time by kickstarting 2021 with 61 basis points for the next 61 days on all of our conventional W2 […]

For many middle-aged and older homeowners with several years of equity on their homes, 2021 could be a prime time to refinance from a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage into a 15-year mortgage. The three primary reasons homeowners refinance to shorter-term loans are to save money on interest, to pay off the loan faster, and to build […]

Summary List Placement “I want it, I got it.” So sings Gen Z and millennial muse Ariana Grande in “7 rings.” The pop star goes on to detail all of the things that she can buy with her reported $150 million fortune — eyelashes, diamonds, hair. “Whoever said money can’t solve your problems/Must not have […]

Summary List Placement Employment shrank in December for the first time in eight months as stricter COVID-19 lockdown measures cut into economic growth. The country’s private sector shed 123,000 payrolls last month, according to the ADP monthly employment report published Wednesday morning. Economists surveyed by Bloomberg expected an increase of 75,000 payrolls. The decline is […]

Mortgage applications dropped 4.2% from two weeks prior, according to the latest report by the Mortgage Bankers Association. Mortgage rates continued 2020’s trend at historically low figures, with the 30-year fixed rate at 2.86% and the 15-year fixed rate at a survey low of 2.40%, according to Joel Kan, MBA’s associate vice president of economic […]

Summary List Placement SEE ALSO: A Gen Z cofounder wants to give his generation a financial education through his app. He says it’s like the Duolingo of financial literacy. DON’T MISS: Jeff Bezos giving $10 billion to fight climate change in February was the single largest donation of 2020 Join the conversation about this story » NOW […]

Months after it delayed its $250 million initial public offering, AmeriHome has signaled that it may now be ready to enter the public markets. The lender and servicer filed updated paperwork with the Securities and Exchanges Commission on Monday detailing its performance through Sept. 30. According to the updated S-1, AmeriHome, owned by asset management […]

Chicago-based lender Guaranteed Rate is acquiring wholesale lender Stearns Lending for an undisclosed sum, multiple sources told HousingWire Tuesday. Employees at Stearns, a multi-channel lender that is owned by financial giant Blackstone Group, were told in an all-hands call on Tuesday afternoon, sources told HousingWire. Neither Guaranteed Rate, a heavy hitter in retail lending, nor […]

Summary List Placement The $10 billion Jeff Bezos gave in February to launch the Bezos Earth Fund, an initiative seeking to combat climate change, has been deemed the single-largest charitable gift of 2020 by The Chronicle of Philanthropy.  Bezos announced the multibillion-dollar gift and the creation of the Bezos Earth Fund on Instagram. His announcement […]

The Housing Policy Council has weighed in on the Conference of State Bank Supervisors’ new proposed standards for nonbank mortgage servicers. In its comments, HPC suggests that regulators need to align on the regulations in order to avoid disruption. In October, CSBS made a controversial move to issue a final rule with proposed prudential standards for nonbank mortgage […]

SimpleNexus, a digital mortgage startup, announced on Tuesday that it picked up $108 million in a Series B funding around. The fund raise comes as the company attempts to increase its marketshare within the eClosing and mobile mortgage segments. The Utah-based software developer offers a private-label digital mortgage platform and mobile app designed to connect […]

Summary List Placement A calculator developed by the Center for American Progress (CAP) shows you exactly how much money you stand to lose by quitting your job during the pandemic – something many people, particularly women, are considering as the coronavirus crisis strains their time, caring responsibilities, and mental health. CAP originally created the tool […]

ReverseVision, a reverse mortgage technology provider, announced on Monday its president, Joe Langner, will now serve as both president and chief executive officer after just nine months with the company. Langner will succeed former CEO John Button, who had previously held the title for over nine years and who will continue to advise the corporate […]

The end of 2020 won’t necessarily mean saying goodbye to the favorable 2% mortgage rates that hit historically-low levels 16 times over the past 12 months. In fact, most industry observers believe rates will remain at the same low levels in 2021 as the Federal Reserve uses low rates as a weapon to combat the […]

The number of mortgages in active forbearance rose by 15,000 in the last week of 2020, according to a report on Friday from Black Knight. Though the raw number increased for the third consecutive week, the number of mortgages in active forbearance remained at 5.3%, unchanged from the two prior weeks. Last week’s uptick was largely driven by the […]