Originations

Mortgage companies added 3,000 full-time employees to their payrolls in February, according to Friday's jobs report.

A new mortgage origination report developed by loan origination system vendor Ellie Mae provides insight into the books of business of the Pleasanton, Calif.-based software company’s lender clients.

William E. "Bill" Mills, Jr., co-founder and chairman of Atlanta-based public relations firm William Mills Agency, passed away on March 15. He was 78.

The total return to investors from U.S.-based REITs in the first quarter was 10.41%, underperforming the S&P 500, which had a 12.59% return for the period, according to the National Association of Real Estate Investment Trusts. Still, REITs were successful in raising money during the period, possibly setting the stage to jump into the commercial refinance market.

First American Title Insurance Co.'s national commercial services division has created an energy group, consisting of land title examiners, attorneys, project coordinators and insurance underwriters to work exclusively on energy-related real estate transactions.

Wells Fargo was both the top commercial/multifamily mortgage originator and top lender for 2011, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

There is considerable emphasis placed on finding solutions to rising heath care costs for those 65 and older, but not enough is placed regarding housing and providing adequate support services for this same group, a Center for Housing Policy report states.

The average rate for a 30-year fixed rate mortgage during the week ending April 5 dropped to 3.98% from 3.99%, according to Freddie Mac's survey.

Small mortgage banking companies benefited from a 32% jump in loan production from the third quarter to the fourth quarter, but profitability per loan was crimped by a slight drop in pricing in the secondary mortgage market, according to a new report by the Mortgage Bankers Association.

If there is any one thing the mortgage sales person should take away from what has happened in the last few years (and still what is happening in the loan modification segment), is that they must operate with ethics and integrity. The taint of a few taints everybody.

The credit union lobby - in the midst of a flurry of new regulatory proposals - is calling on the National Credit Union Administration for a temporary halt to new rulemaking while credit unions catch their breath.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency's three-year effort to develop standardized loan data reporting requirements for newly originated Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac mortgages will finally go live this month.

One of the major contributors to the housing bubble and subsequent collapse of the market was overinflated prices. Now, believes one CEO, the opposite scenario exists.

Nearly three out of every four loan applications taken over the Mortgage Marvel on-loan shopping website last year were for refinancing.

The Federal Housing Administration is taking an extra step to make sure certain homeowners aren't locked out of a special refinancing program that President Obama unveiled on March 6.

Signaling their optimism about the state of the economy, many bankers are predicting that problem loans will moderate and consumer lending will perk up over the next six months, according to a new FICO survey released Tuesday.

The volume of refinance applications increased for the first time in six weeks, while purchase applications were at their highest point in nearly four months, leading to a 4.8% seasonally adjusted increase in overall application volume, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

Your prospect won't close themselves; as a salesperson you need to be prepared to close the transaction at every available opportunity. This might sound like Selling 101 but you would be amazed at how many times a salesperson will meet with a prospect and never attempts to close the sale. I decided to write about this because of two situations I encountered that supports my theory.

With the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau planning new rules on force-placed insurance in the coming year, at least one credit union servicer is taking proactive steps to try to make sure homeowners can afford coverage.

Mortgage industry and government officials may not want to hear this, but the resumption of a non-conforming mortgage market is a key factor in the normalizing of housing finance, and, by extension, the national economy.