Origination

Sales of single-family existing homes in Maine fell by a staggering 21.3% in May from a year earlier, nearly matching the most recent comparable one-year decline of 21.4% following the Great Recession, in June 2011.

Mortgage industry hiring and new job appointments for the week ending June 26.

Home sales in May fell sharply in Flagler and Volusia counties in Florida as the coronavirus pandemic continued to put a damper on the local real estate market.

But the coronavirus put a hold on the market in April and remains an overhanging cloud for the future.

Mortgage rates were flat this week and remain near all-time lows, according to Freddie Mac. But significant numbers of borrowers remain unable to take advantage of them.

Central Ohio home sales fell 21% in May compared with the previous year, but climbed a bit from a horrific April, as the real estate industry continues to wrestle through coronavirus.

An imminent high court ruling about the independence of the bureau's director, coupled with an election victory for Joe Biden, could doom a plan to extend GSEs' exemption from tough debt-to-income requirements on mortgages.

For banks with assets between $10 billion and $100 billion, the average exposure is 165% of capital.

The shutdown imposed by the coronavirus pandemic may have caused an abrupt drop in the real estate business, but early indications show the recovery will come just as quickly.

Video conferencing might replace some in-person meetings even after people can go back out on the road again.