Consumer lending

Flagstar Bancorp in Troy, Mich., said that the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency has terminated its 2012 consent order with its Flagstar Bank on Monday.

So now what? New York Community Bancorp and Astoria Financial have been mum about why they nixed their merger agreement, or where they go next, but the companies have a surprising number of options in the current climate.

New York Community Bancorp in Westbury and Astoria Financial in Lake Success, N.Y., have terminated their merger.

Citigroup's global head of retail banking and mortgages, Jonathan Larsen, who has been known as an advocate of digital banking, resigned for personal reasons, the lender said.

While depository mortgage lenders should exercise some caution before welcoming trended data and alternative credit scoring into their process, they must become inclusive or face losing market share to newer industry players like SoFi.

Fewer delinquencies are expected to accompany higher debt levels in 2017, TransUnion predicted.

The surge in mortgage rates since the November election is expected to offset the increase to lenders' short-term funding costs following the Federal Open Markets Committee's 25-basis-point increase to the federal funds rate.

Southern National Bancorp of Virginia in McLean has agreed to buy Eastern Virginia Bankshares in Glen Allen.

Of the five banks that failed their living will tests earlier this year and were forced to resubmit plans, only Wells Fargo failed again, resulting in immediate regulatory action that will restrict its growth, including its ability to expand internationally and buy nonbank subsidiaries.

Fairway Independent Mortgage Corp. is rolling out a new mobile application that allows consumers to apply for a loan, scan documents and get updates on their loan status through real-time push notifications.

Ally Financial is now making home loans.

A flood of fintech companies are promising to create a better experience for mortgage borrowers, forcing lenders to contemplate buying a vendor's software, building applications in-house — or even outright acquiring a company with digital expertise.

A California bank is planning to add mortgages and home equity lines to its product set.

SAN FRANCISCO — Want to improve the customer experience? Start by making the employees' tools better.

Digital mortgages are not an idea for the future; they are here to stay, and the mortgage industry must put aside its misplaced fear of technology and change and embrace them.

Employment in the nondepository mortgage lenders and brokers sector grew for the fifth straight month, according to the Bureau of Labor of Statistics.

Many big banks are backing away from the retail channel and FHA lending due to rising compliance costs. But U.S. Bank Home Mortgage President Tom Wind sees an opportunity to leverage those challenges to improve efficiency and transparency.

The election results will only intensify factors making competition with bank lenders more difficult, including the effect of interest rates as well as the regulatory environment.

Tom Wind is once again leading a large bank's mortgage operation. As the new president of U.S. Bank Home Mortgage, he's set a course that embraces retail, regulation and the FHA.

First Community Mortgage has added six loan products to its menu, each targeted to borrowers who are not eligible for a conforming or government mortgage.