Bill Pulte, the newly confirmed director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), is wasting no time in making a splash with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, suggesting they too might receive the DOGE treatment that other government entities have already experienced. In a series of messages posted to his X account on Friday morning, […]
Independent mortgage banks (IMBs) and mortgage subsidiaries of chartered banks reported a pre-tax net loss of $40 on each loan they originated in Q4 2024, a decrease from the reported net profit of $701 per loan in Q3 2024. That’s according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Quarterly Mortgage Bankers Performance Report, released today. Of […]
In what seems to have become an ongoing tradition, lawmakers in Congress are bringing the federal government ever closer to a partial shutdown due to an impending lapse in appropriations scheduled for Friday, March 14 if they can’t agree on a funding plan. The impacts are likely to be felt across a wide swath of […]
Mortgage industry veterans Eli Fairfield and Brian Keranen have joined Everett Financial (dba Supreme Lending) as regional directors for the Pacific Southwest, the company announced. Fairfield and Keranen bring decades of experience in mortgage lending, as loan originators and managers in California. In recent years, they have focused on mentoring loan officers and tailoring their […]
Nationwide mortgage loan servicer Cenlar FSB announced today that Andrew Pohlmann has joined the organization as senior vice president of business development. Pohlmann, who brings 30 years of experience to Cenlar, formerly served as Rate’s CMO. He confirmed the new role in a post on LinkedIn. “We are thrilled to welcome Andrew to the team. […]
The U.S. Senate on Thursday confirmed Bill Pulte to serve as the new director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA). Pulte succeeds Sandra Thompson, who led the agency under the Biden administration but left before the inauguration of Donald Trump. Pulte was confirmed in a vote of 56-43, with one senator not voting, an […]
Home equity increased nationally by $281.9 billion in the fourth quarter of 2024, an increase of 1.7% year over year, according to the latest CoreLogic Homeowner Equity Report (HER), released Thursday. But the report also noted rising negative equity in some sunbelt states, along with Oregon and Washington, D.C. The report shows that U.S. homeowners […]
Vice Capital Markets, a mortgage hedge advisory firm for independent lenders, banks and credit unions, announced Thursday that it is the first to integrate Fannie Mae’s new loan pricing application programming interface (API) into its trading portal. The API simplifies the loan pricing and commitment process by consolidating multiple pricing APIs into one. This gives […]
Reverse mortgage leader Finance of America (FOA) recorded a quarter-over-quarter loss in the fourth quarter of 2024, but still notched a full-year profit. In a Wednesday earnings call, company leaders outlined their assessment of the reverse mortgage market moving forward, describing 2024 as a year of “momentum” for the company owing to the achievement of […]
ICE Mortgage Technology has added new analysis tools, expanding its technology portfolio that’s designed to simplify underwriting and post-closing review processes. The company this week announced the debut of ICE Asset Analyzer and ICE Audit Analyzer, adding to the existing ICE Income and ICE Credit analyzers. The products, which are fully integrated into the Encompass […]
Evergreen Home Loans has expanded into New Mexico, opening branches in Albuquerque and Carlsbad. The locations will be led by area manager Barry Abt, the company announced Wednesday. Evergreen, a direct mortgage lender serving the western U.S., provides origination, funding and servicing for home loans. “We are excited to bring the Evergreen Home Loans experience […]
zavvie, a Colorado-based iBuyer and fintech company, has launched an AI-powered platform, HomeFAI, that is designed to accelerate the speed of cash offers and funding for homebuyers. The new system is described as an upgrade to zavvie’s portal for cash buyers and boosts its Cash Buy Before Sell program, giving homeowners added financial flexibility to […]
loanDepot on Wednesday released its financial results for the fourth quarter and full year of 2024. The earnings report showcased a mixed picture for the Irvine, California-based mortgage lender. While the earnings report showed that loanDepot is making progress in revenue growth and operational efficiency, achieving sustained profitability is proving to be more difficult. In […]
Mortgage applications increased 11.2% on a seasonally adjusted basis from last week, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) weekly mortgage applications survey for the week ending March 7, 2025. On an unadjusted basis, the index increased 12% compared to last week. The refinance index saw a 16% uptick from the previous week […]
Since it was originally founded in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has been a chief figure in the regulatory enforcement of the mortgage industry, including the reverse mortgage business. But recent reports suggest that the Trump administration will aggressively scale back the bureau’s headcount and seek to […]
The Trump administration has cut millions of dollars in federal funding from two cybersecurity initiatives, including one dedicated to helping state and local election officials. The U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has ended about $10 million in annual funding to the nonprofit Center for Internet Security, a CISA spokesperson told The Association Press […]
Spring officially arrives next week and the 2025 housing market could heat up too, if the recent declines in mortgage rates are any indication. Data at HousingWire’s Mortgage Rates Center on Tuesday shows that 30-year conforming rates are averaging 6.79%, down 10 basis points (bps) from a week ago. And the 15-year conforming rate has […]
Global consulting and actuarial firm Milliman Inc. is expanding into the residential mortgage business, and it’s picked up Sterling Point Advisors‘ Jeff Juliane and Brett Ludden to lead the effort. Ludden and Juliane will focus on providing comprehensive advisory services to mortgage lenders, servicers and investors. “We are thrilled to welcome Jeff and Brett to […]
Following the controversial actions of the U.S. DOGE Service’s attempts to severely reduce the headcount and enforcement capacity of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), the agency’s chief operating officer has offered more details about efforts to scale back the agency. In an evidentiary hearing stemming from a lawsuit brought by the National Treasury Employees […]
PennyMac Financial Services Inc. on Tuesday announced the appointment of Isaac Boltansky as managing director and head of public policy. “Pennymac is pleased to welcome Isaac to our strong team of industry professionals. In moments of industry transformation, it is critical to have leaders who understand the ecosystem with the expertise to shape the future […]
Tomo Mortgage on Tuesday announced the closure of $20 million in Series B funding that was led by three existing investors and a new participant. The funding round was led by prior investors Ribbit Capital, DST Global and NFX along with new investor Progressive Insurance. Tomo, which was founded in 2020 by former Zillow executives […]
Federally registered broker and correspondent lender Milestone Mortgage Solutions has acquired Willow Home Loans and is looking to join the $1 billion origination club this year. Milestone, the largest brokerage in Massachusetts over the past three years, said the companies will be able to combine Willow’s top-drawer proprietary technology platform with Milestone’s federal registration and […]
A reverse mortgage-related bill that was introduced in the Maryland state Senate that would have put the onus on lenders to cover some extra expenses tied to the Home Equity Conversion Mortgage (HECM) origination process has been withdrawn by the sponsoring senator after conversations with reverse mortgage industry representatives. Senate Bill 831 would have required […]
HomeVision, a collateral underwriting and appraisal review platform, has partnered with artificial intelligence (AI) firm Restb.ai to integrate computer vision technology into real estate valuation processes. The collaboration will incorporate Restb.ai’s AI-powered image recognition into HomeVision’s Machine Intelligence Review Assistant (MIRA) platform. The companies say the technology will improve appraisal accuracy, automate parts of the […]
Rate, formerly known as Guaranteed Rate, has hired Drew Church to its team as a senior vice president and regional sales manager. Church confirmed the news in a LinkedIn post on Sunday evening. Church, who is based in Charlotte, joins Chicago-headquartered Rate from Integrity Home Mortgage Corp., where he served as regional sales manager from […]
Monday’s breaking news that Rocket Companies is set to acquire online real estate brokerage Redfin shed light on the changing landscape of the homebuying marketplace. In an exclusive interview with HousingWire, Rocket CEO Varun Krishna said that having a hand in the entire real estate funnel gives Rocket’s broker network “a bigger piece of the […]
Artificial intelligence (AI), predictive underwriting, and blockchain technology are becoming more common in today’s real estate industry. As a result, professionals in the title and foreclosure industries must evolve to keep up with upcoming trends. However, long-standing challenges still persist within foreclosure firms, title and escrow companies, and title insurance underwriters. Some examples may include […]
In this week’s episode of the PowerHouse podcast, HousingWire President Diego Sanchez chats with Jason Bressler, chief technology officer at United Wholesale Mortgage (UWM). During the conversation, the duo discuss UWM’s recent partnership with Sphere LOS while exploring artificial intelligence and upcoming UWM announcements in 2025. This interview is edited for length and clarity. To […]
Jet HomeLoans, the mortgage arm of publicly traded homebuilder Dream Finders Homes, has acquired Cherry Creek Mortgage LLC. The deal, which closed on March 4, should provide Jet HomeLoans with greater secondary execution it can use to help homebuyers with affordability, an executive told HousingWire. Cherry Creek’s salesforce was acquired by Guild Mortgage in March […]
A lawsuit over allegedly deceptive and misleading advertising practices between two of the reverse mortgage industry’s leading players saw a new development this week. Mutual of Omaha Mortgage amended its counterclaim that alleges deceptive advertising practices against Longbridge Financial. In a suit originally brought by Longbridge in September 2024, Mutual of Omaha responded in January […]
Older Americans are often targets of financial scams by bad actors, and New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) wants to see her state’s Legislature address it more directly. Hochul is seeking to mandate specialized training for bank tellers and other banking professionals in New York to identify and stop instances of elder financial abuse before […]
Rocket Mortgage is shutting down its Canadian operations as the company refocuses on its core U.S. business, with plans to complete the exit by June 27, the Detroit-based lender announced Thursday. The move will reportedly not affect Rocket’s other Canadian ventures, including Lendesk in Vancouver and Rocket Innovation Studio in Windsor, Ontario. “We want to […]
Reverse mortgage industry performance metrics continued their 2025 softness on the basis of endorsement volume and securities issuance, February data shows. Home Equity Conversion Mortgage (HECM) endorsements and HECM-backed securities (HMBS) issuance saw declines in February, although the number of endorsements managed to come in higher for the month of February in each of the […]
loanDepot founder and controlling shareholder Anthony Hsieh is returning to an operational role at the California-based mortgage lender and CEO Frank Martell is departing. In an announcement made Thursday, loanDepot said Hsieh, the company’s chairman of the board, has returned as executive chairman of mortgage operations. Martell will step down from his current posts as […]
TransUnion has expanded its partnership with Truework to provide mortgage lenders with broader access to income and employment verification data. The collaboration integrates Truework’s verification system into TransUnion’s advanced programming interface (API), allowing lenders to verify borrower income and employment through multiple methods. The mortgage addition follows similar integrations for rental screening and auto lending. […]
As Los Angeles residents continue to pick up the pieces following January’s devastating wildfires, an additional reprieve is coming from federal housing agencies. The Federal Housing Administration (FHA) on Thursday announced that a moratorium on foreclosures and evictions for people impacted by the wildfires in Los Angeles County will be extended for another 90 days. […]
Union Home Mortgage (UHM) is suing nine former employees on claims they breached several agreements, including non-compete agreements. The Feb. 17 complaint, which is filed at the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, explains that eight managers and one loan officer, based on the East Coast, all transitioned to American Pacific […]
Volatile mortgage loan volume and profits in today’s real estate market are causing lenders to seek out ways to reduce expenses. Most understand that fee cures are a cost of doing business. But, their recurring rate and effect on profit margins remain largely unmeasured due to a lack of published data. ICE Mortgage Technology conducted […]
As the Trump administration continues to impose cuts to staff and offices across the federal government, the Federal Housing Administration (FHA)’s Home Equity Conversion Mortgage (HECM) program — which handles the vast majority of reverse mortgage business in the U.S. — could be impacted. According to Bloomberg, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development […]
The newest weekly mortgage applications survey data, released Wednesday by the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) included the lowest mortgage rates in months, which created a stir in the number of applications. According to the MBA, the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) share of the market dipped to 6.42%, while refinance activity posted its fastest pace since […]
Leading mortgage technology provider Uplist recently announced a new integration with fellow tech firm Polly. This move grants loan officers access to real-time insights that are designed to improve borrower assistance and engagement. Loan officers on the Uplist platform can now leverage Polly’s product and pricing engine (PPE) to more easily pursue refinance opportunities. LOs […]
PennyMac Financial Services, one of the nation’s largest mortgage lenders and servicers, on Wednesday announced a partnership that will give the company a high level of visibility during the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles. California-based Pennymac will be the official mortgage supporter of the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic teams at the 2028 Olympics. In […]
Mortgage applications increased 20.4% from one week earlier on a seasonally adjusted basis as buyers pounced on lower rates, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) weekly mortgage applications survey for the week ending Feb. 28, 2025. On an unadjusted basis, applications increased 22% compared with the previous week. The refinance index increased […]
During last month’s Super Bowl broadcast, Rocket Companies unveiled its “Own the Dream” campaign, which the company describes as a means of redefining homeownership as a pathway to generational wealth rather than just a transaction. The company’s ambitious commercial — which featured John Denver’s “Take Me Home, Country Roads” — was only the first part […]
Shant Banosian, ranked the No. 1 loan originator in the country by volume for at least five years, is assuming the role of president at Rate Mortgage, the company announced Tuesday. Victor Ciardelli will remain the CEO of Rate Companies. Rate, formerly known as Guaranteed Rate before a rebrand in 2024, ranked as No. 8 […]