Origination

The new regulations take effect in July and come after the agency issued new equitable housing goals days earlier.

Average purchase-loan amounts on new applications also increased after a recent pullback, as limited inventory provided little price relief.

Banks could be in for a long, slow trickle of bank failures and consolidation in the coming months and years, particularly if inflation persists and interest rates keep rising. A downturn in commercial real estate could add to banks' problems.

The American Bankers Association's latest Credit Conditions Index points to a drop in lending and a rise in loan delinquencies through the second and third quarters.

But overall availability still remained near a 10-year low in March, with government-backed products falling for the third time in four months, the Mortgage Bankers Association found.

But the deal propels the four-year old buyer of its wholesale origination operation, The Loan Store, into the national spotlight.

Last month saw purchase rate locks increase by 44%, jumping past the 30% average in February, according to Black Knight's report.

But profits more than doubled on the servicing side, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

The president of originations at the public company, Phil Shoemaker, will take over as CEO of the acquiring firm.

Affordability constraints have made borrowers who bought properties within the last 12 months increasingly vulnerable to price declines.