Refinance

Mr. Cooper plans to hire an additional 2,000 employees by the end of this year as record low interest rates spur home purchases and mortgage refinancings.

But federal elections and the pandemic make projections on the sustainability of industry profitability especially tricky.

Millennials locked in the lowest mortgage rates on record and kept the summer housing market hot, according to Ellie Mae.

Mortgage applications fell for the third consecutive week, likely because those borrowers motivated to refinance have already done so, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

The refinance boom kept mortgage loan application defect risk flat, with record-low levels in July, but fraud risk for purchases climbed again, according to First American Financial.

The new reality for investors and originators accounts for forbearances and ability-to-repay.

Mortgage application volume decreased 6.5%, falling for the second consecutive week with refinance activity at its lowest since early July, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

The mortgage giants were criticized earlier this month for a plan to charge an "adverse market fee" to protect against losses resulting from the pandemic.

Lenders initially won't be able to pass on the cost of the Federal Housing Finance Agency's "adverse market fee" to borrowers whose rates on GSE-backed mortgages and refinances are already locked in.

The higher charge on mortgages refinanced through Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac is supposed to cushion against a crisis but could contribute to one as the fees are passed on to struggling consumers.