FHA

Residential mortgage originations fell 19% year-over-year in the fourth quarter of 2017, due primarily to a large drop in refinance volume, according to Attom Data Solutions.

Continued increases in mortgage rates caused the refinance loan application share to fall to its lowest level since September 2008, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

February's volume of mortgage loan applications for newly constructed homes rose both year-over-year and month-to-month, continuing the momentum from a surprisingly strong showing in January.

Loan program revisions made by one large conventional mortgage investor led to a decrease in total residential home finance credit availability in February.

Mortgage application activity increased slightly from one week earlier even as the rate for the 30-year conforming loan rose to its highest level in four years.

Recent developments in the Federal Housing Administration's Home Equity Conversion Mortgage program are making it easier for lenders to originate reverse mortgages to borrowers who want to buy a new-construction home.

The secretary of housing and urban development also urged the Senate to approve Brian Montgomery to be the new Federal Housing Administration commissioner.

Higher levels of purchase activity even with rising interest rates drove the increase in mortgage applications compared with one week earlier.

Acting commissioner Dana Wade said the agency is "vigilantly" watching whether it needs to take action on PACE assessments placed on mortgages after they are endorsed by the agency.

The agency should resist renewed calls to lower insurance premiums. Doing so would increase demand and raise home prices, negating any proposed benefits.

First-time homebuyers using loans backed by private mortgage insurance soared in the fourth quarter on the growing popularity of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac's 3% down payment options, according to Genworth.

Private mortgage insurance continued to take market share from the Federal Housing Administration in 2017, with both products outpacing the growth in mortgage debt outstanding.

Refinance mortgages accounted for 45% of mortgage volume, the highest share in a year, according to Ellie Mae.

With 30-year mortgage rates reaching a four-year high, loan application activity was lower this past week, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

Nearly 50 years after the federal Fair Housing Act was signed into law, banning racial discrimination in lending, black prospective homebuyers in the St. Louis area continue to be denied conventional mortgage loans at a much higher rate than whites.

Rising rates, largely tied to the stock market turmoil, took their toll on mortgage application volume during the past week.

The new budget proposal projects a very profitable Federal Housing Administration in fiscal year 2019, but there are no indications the FHA will reduce its mortgage insurance premiums anytime soon.

Even as rates hit their highest levels in nearly four years, mortgage application volume increased compared with one week earlier, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

A Bucks County, Pa., man is charged with lying to federal housing officials in a series of forged financial statements in order to serve as an approved mortgage lender for the Federal Housing Administration.

Rising rates suppressed total mortgage application activity, which decreased 2.6% from one week earlier, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.