Originations

Mortgage application volume started off 2017 on a good note as activity increased 5.8% from one week earlier, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

House Democrats sent a letter Tuesday to President-elect Donald J. Trump, urging him to reject calls by Republicans to fire Richard Cordray, the director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

Refinance volume rose among millennial borrowers in November, reflecting a nationwide trend, according to Ellie Mae.

Through Motto Mortgage, Remax is looking to give its smaller franchisees the same ability to offer one-stop shopping to homebuyers as larger operators, in a way that will not raise red flags for regulators.

Mortgage brokers and their wholesale partners have seen a slow increase in their market share since the start of the housing recovery. Remax's Motto Mortgage franchise business could accelerate growth faster than the channel's advocates hope for.

American Mortgage Consultants has acquired a business unit that handles due diligence and quality control for residential mortgages from Stewart Lender Services.

Two Republican senators sent a letter to Vice President-elect Mike Pence calling for the removal of Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Richard Cordray.

Ellie Mae has rolled out an extension to its Encompass Lending Platform to allow loan officers to originate loans in a mobile environment.

The Federal Housing Administration said it would cut the annual premium by 25 basis points starting on Jan. 27, giving President-elect Donald Trump a limited window to delay or scrap the cut.

In a letter Monday to Comptroller Thomas Curry, Sens. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, and Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., registered their strong opposition to the concept of the charter, which would allow certain types of fintech companies to avoid state licensing requirements by obtaining a limited-purpose national bank charter.