Origination

Contract signings to purchase previously owned homes rose less than forecast in October after declining in the prior two months, showing residential real estate is cooling heading into the quieter selling season.

Jeff Patmont got his home loan on his phone. The 30-year-old marketing manager for a medical-device company said he did almost everything electronically for the mortgage on his home in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Freddie Mac's Multi-Indicator Market Index is pursuing its slow climb, but still shows housing recovering unevenly across the nation.

A plan by the government-sponsored enterprises to begin collecting the new Closing Disclosure data is designed to promote Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac's loan quality goals. But the initiative may also prompt broader use of e-signatures and paperless processing.

Mortgage rates remained steady during the week ending Nov. 25, according to Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey.

Commercial mortgages bundled into securities will keep seeing their underwriting standards deteriorate from this year into 2016, said JPMorgan analysts in a report Wednesday.

The percentage of mortgage applications with defects declined in October, according to First American Financial Corp.

Purchases of new homes rebounded in October from a 14-month low and order backlogs reached an eight-year high, indicating a pickup in residential construction.

A recent CFPB action against a payday lender demonstrates why lenders across industries must disclose both the best and worst case repayment scenarios to consumers.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency said Wednesday that conforming loan limits for mortgages purchased by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will remain at existing levels except in 39 high-cost counties.