The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) announced on Wednesday it has changed its proposal to amend the Suspended Counterparty Program (SCP), offering a less severe version after several trade groups raised concerns about its impacts on the mortgage market. The SCP, established in June 2012 during the Obama administration, requires that entities report to FHFA […]
Mortgage applications are now at their highest level in more than two years after an 11% jump during the week ending Sept. 20, according to the newest weekly applications survey from the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA). The 11% increase in the MBA’s overall applications index — boosting the index to its highest point since July […]
A judge in Arizona granted Mat Grella, the former president of NEXA Mortgage, a motion to dismiss a lawsuit filed by the company. NEXA has accused Grella of causing the failure of a $24 million hangar-office property purchase and the brokerage firm is preparing to file an amended complaint. The saga began in March when […]
Applicants hoping to get a mortgage job in 2024. (Image created by AI in Midjourney.) ” data-image-caption=” Applicants hoping to get a mortgage job in 2024. (Image created by AI in Midjourney.) ” data-medium-file=”https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/waitingroom.jpg?w=300″ data-large-file=”https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/waitingroom.jpg?w=1024″ tabindex=”0″ role=”button” src=”https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/waitingroom.jpg?w=1024″ alt=”Applicants hoping to get a mortgage job in 2024.” class=”wp-image-483302″ srcset=”https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/waitingroom.jpg 1200w, https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/waitingroom.jpg?resize=150,84 150w, https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/waitingroom.jpg?resize=300,169 300w, https://www.housingwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/waitingroom.jpg?resize=768,432 […]
New York-based asset manager Rithm Capital, the owner of multichannel lender Newrez, announced on Tuesday that it plans to raise money for “general corporate purposes” by selling up to 34.5 million shares of common stock to investors in a public offering. The company said underwriters will offer shares from time to time in negotiated transactions […]
Roemanu, the holding company for Toorak Capital Partners and Merchants Mortgage, announced on Tuesday that it has hired former Finance of America executive Charles Macintosh as its chief operating officer. Macintosh will also join Roemanu’s executive committee and oversee multiple areas of the business from its headquarters in Tampa and its office in Summit, New […]
Top U.S. mortgage lender United Wholesale Mortgage (UWM) this week won a three-year legal battle with a mortgage brokerage firm. The case involves the lender’s controversial “All-In” initiative, which states that brokers who work with UWM cannot engage in business with competitors Rocket Mortgage and Fairway Independent Mortgage Corp. On Monday, U.S. District Court Judge […]
Seller repurchases of Freddie Mac mortgages rose to $430 million in the second quarter of 2024, a 29.1% increase from the first quarter, according to an analysis of public filings by Inside Mortgage Finance. By contrast, sellers of loans through fellow government-sponsored enterprise (GSE) Fannie Mae repurchased $268.5 million in noncompliant loans during the same […]
On Monday, a coalition of eight senators — seven Democrats and one Independent — submitted a letter to Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) Director Sandra Thompson, urging her to phase in a series of modernized energy-efficiency standards for mortgages backed by the government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The signatories include Sens. Cory […]
Mortgage technology platform provider Dark Matter Technologies announced on Monday that it has added a second loan origination system (LOS) — NOVA — to its product lineup. NOVA joins current LOS Empower, and both offerings will aim to offer distinct options for a wider range of mortgage lenders, according to the announcement. “Adopting a dual-product […]
California-based mortgage lender loanDepot has hired military advocate Bryan Bergjans as part of an effort to boost its lending capacity in the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) space. Bergjans joined the company this month as its national director of military growth and strategy. Before that, Bergjans spent eight years at Caliber Home Loans, including […]
The Federal Reserve did something this week it hadn’t done in more than four years when it lowered the federal funds rate by half a percentage point. But for mortgage industry professionals hampered by fewer sales opportunities since the Fed’s streak of rate hikes began in March 2022, will this be the start of better […]
In a new episode of the HousingWire Daily podcast, host Sarah Wheeler chats with Bob Broeksmit, president and CEO of the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA). The pair discuss the latest happenings for independent mortgage banks (IMBs) during the election season, updates to the Federal Housing Administration (FHA)’s 203(k) loan program — which allows homebuyers to […]
The Homebuyers Privacy Protection Act of 2024, a U.S. Senate bill introduced this past December that targets mortgage trigger leads, has been incorporated into the fiscal year 2025 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). This is a bill that Congress must pass each year, since it refers to laws that specify the annual budget for the […]
The HousingWire award spotlight series highlights the individuals and organizations that have been recognized through our Editors’ Choice Awards. Nominations for HousingWire’s 2024 Tech Trendsetters award are open now through Monday, Sept. 30. Click here to nominate someone. If we learned anything from HousingWire’s recent AI Summit, artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly reshaping lending by streamlining processes, reducing costs, and […]
Like the traditional forward space, the reverse mortgage industry has been operating in an elevated interest rate environment for some time. While news of the Federal Reserve lowering its benchmark interest rate by 50 basis points (bps) to a range of 4.75% to 5% will have wider economic ramifications in the government’s ongoing efforts to […]
Heartland Bank, the leading reverse mortgage lender in Australia and New Zealand, will rebrand its dedicated reverse mortgage division from “Heartland Finance” to “Heartland Bank” following a recent acquisition and a repositioning of its offerings. “We are excited to deliver the Heartland Bank brand to our reverse mortgage customers,” said Medina Cicak, the bank’s newly […]
The overall critical defect rate for mortgages increased in the first quarter of 2024, ending five consecutive quarters of decline. But the increase itself was relatively modest and the share of loans with defects now stands at 1.58%, according to a report released Thursday by ACES Quality Management. The company’s Mortgage QC Industry Trends Report […]
CMG Home Loans, the retail lending division of CMG Financial, has its eyes on growing its dedicated reverse mortgage segment. In addition to recently making a key operations hire in an effort to expand its capacity to originate and fund loans, market conditions — including an expanding Home Equity Conversion Mortgage (HECM) for Purchase market […]
Elder financial exploitation (EFE) is a common form of elder abuse that impacts as much as 10% of older Americans each year. But to better combat its growing commonality, more information is needed — particularly for vulnerable communities — according to senior advocacy organization AARP. “While financial exploitation can occur in any community, gaps in […]
The Federal Reserve lowered its benchmark interest rate on Wednesday by 50 basis points (bps) to a range of 4.75% to 5%, turning an important corner in the central bank’s fight against inflation. The cut is the first since March 2020 after the Fed raised interest rates to a 23-year high point to cool the economy […]
For those of us in the mortgage world, the spring and summer market may be showing some signs of slowing down, and what a ride this market has been. If the past few years have taught us anything, even the veterans must find ways to adapt, and anything can happen in our industry. You deserve […]
Federal Reserve policymakers are expected to lower the benchmark interest rate on Wednesday for the first time in more than four years. But it appears to be anyone’s guess as to how large the cut will be. Interest rate traders were giving shorter odds on Tuesday afternoon to a cut of 50 basis points (bps), […]
Global investment firm Carlyle has agreed to purchase up to $300 million of equity sharing home loans from home equity solutions provider Unison. Carlyle also made a strategic investment into the San Francisco-based Unison, enabling it to launch its Equity Sharing Home Loan product. “We are excited to partner with Unison to provide an attractive solution […]
A historic rise in home prices and nearly three years of high mortgage rates have put housing issues front and center in the 2024 presidential campaign. Kamala Harris has outlined an ambitious vision for housing that would involve the construction of 3 million new homes in four years. At a policy discussion on Monday hosted […]
If Donald Trump wins a second term in the White House, he’s going to attempt to return Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to private status after more than 16 years under federal conservatorship. That’s according to Mark Calabria, the former head of the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) under Trump. As for the mechanics of […]
The federal government is launching a campaign on Zillow to help provide housing counseling services to more Americans. The Department of U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) on Tuesday also will publish a new final rule in the Federal Register to expand accepted communication methods for counseling clients. Zillow advertising partnership Zillow is […]
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 […]