Rida Sharaf: The Pandemic Has Resulted in a More Cooperative Culture in Mortgage
PERSON OF THE WEEK: The mortgage industry is cyclical in nature - typically rising and falling with seasonal and economic patterns. But in 2020,...
Zillow: You Ain’t Seen Nothing Yet
According to new analysis from Zillow, demand for housing will continue to grow and is expected to surge in the cities as economies reopen,...
Rising Prices Pushed Total U.S. Home Equity to Record Level in Q3
Due to rising home prices, the amount of equity U.S. homeowners had as of the third quarter increased by 10.8% year over year, reaching...
First Option Mortgage Adds Four New Locations
National lender First Option Mortgage reports that it has opened four additional offices in Kentucky, Texas and Florida.
The new location in Corbin, Ken., will...
Mortgage Rates Drop to New Historic Low
Mortgage rates hit yet another record low this week, as the average rate for a 30-year fixed rate mortgage dropped to 2.67%, down from...
Introducing First American Data & Analytics
First American Financial Corp. has announced the rebrand of its data division as the First American Data & Analytics Division, bringing together advanced analytic solutions...
Mortgage Applications Increased as Rates Hit Yet Another Record Low
Mortgage application volume increased 1.1% on an adjusted basis during the week ended Dec. 11, as mortgage rates continued to hover near record lows,...
Applications for New Home Purchases Remain Strong Despite November Dip
Applications for mortgages for new home purchases decreased 16% in November compared with October but were up 34.7% compared with November 2019, according to...
Mark Revard: Mortgage Industry Has Shown Resilience Through Pandemic
PERSON OF THE WEEK: The COVID-19 crisis has created numerous obstacles for the mortgage industry during the past 10 months but that hasn’t stopped...
CFPB Updates Qualified Mortgage Rule
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has finalized two rules that will replace its Qualified Mortgage (QM) rule.
The first rule, the General QM Final...
Mortgage Rates Holding Steady at Record Lows
Mortgage rates held steady this week as the average rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage stayed pinned at a record low of 2.71%, according...
FNF Launches New Platform to Transform the Home Buying, Refinancing Process
Fidelity National Financial Inc. has introduced a new a technology platform designed to transform the experience of buying, selling, or refinancing a home.
FNF’s new...
Wolters Kluwer to Acquire eOriginal
Wolters Kluwer Governance, Risk & Compliance (GRC) is acquiring digital lending software provider eOriginal for approximately €231 million in cash.
The acquisition extends GRC Compliance...
Home Buyers, Sellers Open to Using Self-Serve Technology for Home Inspection Process
More than one-third of consumers who recently bought, sold or refinanced their homes expressed a willingness to use self-serve technology in the home inspection...
Tom Ciulla: Why Strategic Alliances Have Greater Importance in Today’s Mortgage Market
PERSON OF THE WEEK: In order for mortgage companies to thrive in today’s market, they must be highly selective in terms of the strategic...
Mortgage Lenders Much Less Optimistic About Profitability
According to Fannie Mae's Mortgage Lender Sentiment Survey for the fourth quarter,. mortgage lenders' profitability outlook for the next three months declined from last...
Home Point Financial Rolls Out Rebranding Effort
National mortgage lender and servicer Home Point Financial is rebranding to Homepoint.
Homepoint says it is now the third-largest wholesale mortgage lender and 9th-largest nonbank...
Promontory MortgagePath Hires Elisha Werner as Chief Compliance Officer
Elisha Werner has joined Promontory MortgagePath as chief compliance officer.
Werner has more than 20 years of experience in mortgage industry compliance. She has served...
Mortgage Credit Availability Loosened in November
Mortgage credit availability increased 0.7% in November, reaching a score of 122.2 on the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Mortgage Credit Availability Index (MCAI).
It was...
Is it Better to Work in One Channel or for a Multichannel Company?
BLOG VIEW: No matter what you do in the mortgage industry, chances are you can do it for a multichannel company or a single...