Origination

The recent drop in interest rates has opened the door for lenders to refinance borrowers with high-cost Federal Housing Administration loans into conventional Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac loans.

While Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac wait for Congress to decide when and how to act on housing industry legislation, the government-sponsored enterprises are working with their regulator on "nonlegislative GSE reform" that will better prepare them to implement new laws.

Recently released HMDA data strongly suggest that the reason minority homeownership rates are falling since the beginning of the recession isn't because minorities are opting out of the mortgage process, but because they're being excluded.

A two-year growth streak in national home prices stalled in the second quarter, according to Fitch Ratings.

Lenders increasingly find themselves responsible for protecting clients’ money and non-public personal information as those funds and data pass through several vendors that are part of the mortgage process.

But the payoff for the agency is that it increases the availability of credit for consumers.

Sales of previously owned homes rose in September to the highest level in a year, adding to signs that residential real estate will be a plus for the economy.

Originators and counselors generally need to spend more time explaining reverse mortgages to borrowers than traditional home loans, but advances in automation are moving reverses more quickly after application.

Synovus Financial in Columbus, Ga., reported a higher third-quarter profit as its total loans and net interest income increased.

A growing number of industry insiders find mortgage lending compliance may slow down but will not stop increased demand for electronic transactions.