Origination

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused a mild fluctuation in the Savannah, Ga., area real estate market, but many people are still inking closing contracts. At the same time. local industry leaders and agents are turning to technology to help them find their forever homes.

COVID-19 has led to an unprecedented number of homes for sale being withdrawn, canceled or temporarily taken off the market in Sarasota County, Fla., but the prices on the homes that are being sold have held steady, according to a Sarasota real estate firm.

Mortgage industry hiring and new job appointments for the week ending April 17.

As federal stimulus checks land in bank accounts in coming days, a sobering reality may hit many Bay Area residents — the money will cover less of their housing costs than anywhere else in the country.

The nation's largest bank is temporarily reducing its exposure to the mortgage market amid rising unemployment and estimates that home prices could drop by 10%.

The National Credit Union Administration is giving lenders and borrowers extra time to complete appraisals to ensure mortgages are still being completed despite the pandemic.

Many El Paso, Texas, homebuilders are opening model homes only for appointments, or in other ways limiting access to the homes, which for years have been their best selling tool. Home construction continues.

The move is part of an effort by CFPB Director Kathy Kraninger to help smaller lenders by significantly raising loan thresholds for collecting and reporting mortgage data.

Mortgage rates slipped this week as the coronavirus keeps affecting the overall U.S. economy, according to Freddie Mac.

New-home construction declined in March from the previous month by the most since 1984 as the pandemic started to take a bigger toll on the housing market and broader economy.