Coronavirus

A rise in coronavirus cases and the removal of a 50-basis-point adverse market fee designed to protect Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac during the pandemic contributed to the largest weekly drop so far this year.

The agency’s new chief said eliminating the “adverse market fee” — in place since December — will make it easier for families to refinance while mortgage rates are still low.

Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Brett Kavanaugh joined the court’s three liberals in rejecting calls by landlords and real estate trade associations to block the measure from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Employers and employees don't agree on what a return-to-normal looks like in a post-COVID world. But to move forward with success, they must see eye-to-eye.

In a pandemic-scarred year, boards and compensation committees at 60 large and regional banks relied less on the normal performance metrics and more on qualitative criteria to determine bonus payments.

Only 0.9% of mortgage borrowers are currently at least 90 days delinquent. That figure could rise as high as 3.8% once pandemic-related deferrals lapse — still well below the 6% mark reached after the Great Recession, according to research by the New York Fed.

COVID-19 has shown us that technology can rapidly evolve to meet customer needs, in areas from contactless payments to digital banking to mobile wallets. However, we still see great disparities when it comes to the use of contactless and digital banking by low- to moderate-income (LMI) workers. The question is, will emerging tech in the post-COVID economy provide an opportunity to include new people in the financial system-- or leave them even further behind?

The agency's new policy requires collectors seeking to evict tenants to provide written notice of their rights under a federal moratorium.

As vaccinations proliferate, homeowners who held off during the pandemic are finally gearing up to list their properties, a recent survey finds.

But others warn that the optimism is unsustainable as a successful vaccine rollout doesn’t necessarily equate to the return of pre-pandemic work and travel habits.

By applying what has been learned in the past year, mortgage providers can ensure they will be better positioned to take on more loans and grow their business, EarnUp CEO and co-founder Nadim Homsany writes

In an analysis of the pandemic's impact on the housing market, the agency said nearly 10% of households could be at risk of eviction or foreclosure despite government programs to enable homeowners to delay their payments.

The agency will allow an additional three months of forbearance for loans backed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, giving homeowners up to 18 months to suspend payments due to the pandemic.

House Financial Services Committee members were at odds over whether to have support for homeowners and the State Small Business Credit Initiative, both included the $1.9 trillion stimulus plan, expire when the pandemic ends or later.

Homeowners still deferring payments on federally backed loans as of Feb. 28 will be permitted to request an additional three months of relief.

The uptick marks only the third increase in consecutive weeks since reaching a peak in May, according to Black Knight.

Dave Uejio, acting director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, promised to protect veterans from predatory loans and to crack down on companies that improperly garnish stimulus checks or mistreat struggling borrowers.

Investors were also reacting to the inauguration of Joe Biden and uncertainty over additional fiscal relief, Freddie Mac’s Chief Economist Sam Khater said.

The former No. 2 at Countrywide had been battling brain cancer prior to passing away from the coronavirus.