Economy

Blackstone Group LP acquired a "significant equity stake" in mortgage insurer PMI Group Inc.

New Jersey Community Capital in New Brunswick won a Fannie Mae auction of nonperforming loans.

The price of loans that underlie commercial mortgage-backed securities rose in July on a monthly basis, according to DebtX.

American Homes 4 Rent is sticking with a feature that reduces refinancing risk in its upcoming single-family rental securitization.

The Home Mortgage Disclosure Act data set to be released in the next few weeks will offer new proof that mortgage lending activity was stronger than expected last year. That fresh data, the likely delay in Fed action on rates and other factors could prompt higher volume estimates for 2015.

After his son was born with a number of serious medical conditions, Atlantic Coast Mortgage's Thad Musser has made it a personal mission to show gratitude to the hospital responsible for his treatment. Little did he know these gestures would help him bond with customers who have faced similar experiences.

Mortgage applications rose 11.3% from a week earlier on a seasonally adjusted basis for the week ending Aug. 28, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

More than half of real estate agents are planning to extend their sales contracts to provide more time for the closing process due to the coming implementation of new mortgage disclosures.

Home prices rose 6.9% in July compared to a year ago, according to CoreLogic.

Fraud risk has diminished as a result of widespread changes that lenders have made to their origination practices, according to Fitch Ratings.

Mortgage credit got harder to obtain during the first quarter, although economists expect access to credit will continue to gradually improve, according to Zillow.

Credit unions are no longer the tiny cooperatives they were a generation ago.

The resignation of Stonegate Mortgage founder and CEO Jim Cutillo will likely result in either the quick hiring of a replacement CEO to execute Stonegate's business plan or the company being acquired, according to analysts at FBR Capital Markets.

A new battle is brewing between Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac as the government-sponsored enterprises set out to boost their purchases of low down payment loans.

Suncrest Bank is hoping that its team of experienced executives, combined with organic growth and acquisitions, will help more than double its assets in the next few years.

Marketplace lenders seek to disrupt traditional financial services with online platforms that connect borrowers to investors. But in real estate, this burgeoning sector has taken an approach that seeks to co-exist with, rather than supplant, the traditional mortgage market.

As marketing services agreements increasingly fall out of favor, a more level playing field may emerge where loan officers must aggressively compete on their skill and service to win referral business.

State housing finance agencies are well positioned to benefit from the entry of millennials into the housing market, according to Moody's Investors Service.

Oil-producing states defied the U.S. housing crash by posting gains in home values as the rest of the nation suffered.

Residential mortgage servicers are once again tapping the securitization market to fund advances to bondholders for the first time since April 2014.