Originations

Nationwide, new home construction isn't keeping up with rising prices and demand. But in certain areas of the Southwest and Southeast, builders are bucking this trend, creating housing supply that is more flexible to market fluctuations.

Donald Trump had heard all the chatter, the idle talk about how the U.S. housing market was overheating and trouble was looming. He was unfazed. It was the spring of 2006 and he was pushing a new mortgage business, Trump Mortgage LLC.

The Federal Housing Administration should look to private mortgage insurance companies as a model for how to standardize the claim review process.

Clara, a new online mortgage lender, has launched with $27 million in equity financing.

The first commercial mortgage-backed security to comply with "skin in the game" requirements was extremely well received. Market participants credit the way the large banks sponsoring the deal retained the risk – a strategy unavailable to nonbank lenders.

It's time to move past the fear that digital mortgages will make loan officers obsolete.

Mortgage industry hiring and new job appointments for the week ending Aug. 19.

Mortgage rates edged downward this week as the market anticipated Wednesday's release of the minutes from the Federal Open Market Committee's July meeting, Freddie Mac reported.

A monthly gain in refinance activity coupled with a decrease in rates last month, according to data from Ellie Mae. However, loan turnaround times as a whole remained static.

United Bankshares in Charleston, W.Va., has agreed to buy Cardinal Financial in Tysons Corner, Va.

To money managers at Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Prudential Financial Inc., the laggards of the debt universe look pretty good right now.

The hole at the corner of 15th and L streets, in downtown Washington, is deep – and getting deeper.

The impressive loan growth in the second quarter is surprising in an economy that grew by 1.2% in the second quarter and by only 0.8% in the first quarter.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's choice for its new head of supervision and enforcement — the No. 3 slot at the agency — is raising eyebrows because of his political background and relative inexperience compared with similar positions at other regulators.

Online lender LoanDepot has raised $150 million in term debt financing as part of its capital strategy.

Mortgage application activity decreased 4% from one week earlier as home purchase volume fell to its lowest point in six months, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

United Bankshares is in talks to acquire Cardinal Financial Corp., according to people familiar with the matter, as regional banks seek to pair up to counter low interest rates and mounting regulatory costs.

Arch U.S. MI's acquisition of United Guaranty Corp. will make one of the smallest private mortgage insurers the sector's new market leader. While the move is likely to ease pricing competition among the six remaining players, it's not expected to set off a wave of further consolidation.

Existing home sales and median home prices dipped in July, reflecting the impact of declining affordability, according to the California Association of Realtors.

Enforcement actions by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau against companies are well-known, but compliance starts with individuals.