Origination

New home equity conversion mortgage endorsements slowed in April, but remained almost 50% higher than the level from one year ago.

Some economists see a recession as inevitable but other markers, like the unemployment rate and consumption indicators, point to a resilient economy.

But total volume is still 53% below last year’s level, while Fannie Mae found the dollar value of refinances down by over 70%.

JPMorgan Chase is laying off hundreds of home-lending employees and reassigning hundreds more this week as rapidly rising mortgage rates drive down demand in what had been a red-hot housing market.

Depreciation risk in parts of New Jersey, Illinois and California is growing, according to a first quarter analysis by Attom Data Solutions.

The conflicting analyses of automated valuation models highlight a challenge lenders could face in deciding whether to use them to determine racial disparities in home evaluations.

Many cities with higher shares of list price drops also appeared on a list of the most overvalued areas in the country.

Contract closings decreased 3.4% in May from the prior month to an annualized 5.41 million, the weakest since June 2020, figures from the National Association of Realtors showed Tuesday.

The data breach, which occurred over a two-day period last December, is the largest disclosure by a mortgage lender this year.

While compliance specialists will be in demand, loan producers will see their roles change to encompass responsibilities that include more marketing and client development.