Banco Popular de Puerto Rico

Lawsuits entangling the industry's biggest brands drew a lot of attention and venerated leaders dishing on today's landscape were closely read too.

Changes affecting market pricing and court actions with game-changing potential were among the leading policy developments in housing finance last year.

Home lending and real estate-related businesses developed tools to answer loan officer questions, help write marketing copy, envision newly designed interiors and even correspond with consumers on a limited basis.

Citizens' SVP and director of mortgage secondary and capital markets reflects on what her experience with past cycles suggests about where this one may be headed.

National Mortgage News recounts some of the notable mergers and acquisitions completed in the past 12 months.

The majority of non-core work, such as accounting, IT and HR functions can be offloaded to a third party as a means for lenders to shave expenses.

Also, Stavvy acquires new executives after latest acquisition, Logan Finance accelerates expansion and CV3, First Community and Kiavi add capital markets experts.

Home buyers appear to place the highest priority on affordability, with cities in the Midwest and Northeast taking the majority of top spots on Zillow's list.

Properties in the top three ZIP codes are seen by an average of 4.5 times more unique viewers than the typical property in the U.S. and spend an average of 16.3 days on the market.

The real estate markets where prices are expected to rise the most this year will see an average increase of 5.14%.