Loan Think

More Americans are using remote work arrangements, such as working from a home office these days, while survey data shows support either arguments—that these arrangements are more productive or they are productivity killers.

FACTS

Does the Federal Housing Finance Agency have the right to change credit standards? That appears to be one argument MBS investors are making against a massive government-backed refinancing program being contemplated by the White House.

It seems as though the Mortgage Bankers Association, the nation's premier trade group for firms that actually fund loans, has pulled down the cone of silence on the issue of guarantee fee discounts offered by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

Remember Citigroup's retail-based consumer finance division, which included (from what I recall) branches from the old Associates First Capital Corporation? Lately, we haven't heard much about the unit which previously was called CitiFinancial.

You've got to look up and out. That is where you build your business. According to world renowned business management author Peter Drucker, "Growth for any company is found outside of its four walls, not from within." That is where you will find the business – outside of your four walls.

How does that old Chinese proverb go? I think it's: May you live in interesting times. Well, it sure got interesting Thursday morning when stocks tumbled almost 400 points on the Dow and the yield on the benchmark 10-year bond hit yet another new low: 1.75%. That's not a misprint.

By now you know the story: there are plenty of potential home buyers out there, but underwriting standards are too tight to accommodate them, so slowly but quietly ‘hard money’ lenders are on the rise.

In case you missed our exclusive report on the Monday National Mortgage News website, here's a bit of news: John Robbins, who exited the business about six years ago, is about to launch a new lending platform – a retail/wholesale shop at that.

I recently viewed a cable television special on hot dogs and as part of the show it featured some of the great marketing campaigns that helped to distinguish a very commoditized product from the competition.