Originations

Fannie Mae sees growth in refinance activity pushing volumes upward, but flattening purchases will temper lender momentum, according to its December report.

The 30-year fixed rate mortgage dropped 3 basis points this week, its lowest level since October and just over its 52-week bottom, Freddie Mac reported.

The regulator lowered benchmarks for acquisitions of certain single-family loans including low-income refinances, and left multifamily targets intact.

The announcement follows Realpha's two previous mergers with mortgage brokerages, as well as its purchases of AI firms and title businesses.

The inventory slowdown came as properties sold for 1.6% below asking prices, with some sellers opting to remove their listings altogether, according to Redfin.

Our experts expect a mortgage market reset in 2026 with an uptick in originations, but warn lenders not to skimp on compliance even as the reins loosen.

Existing-home sales in the US barely rose in November, as a recent moderation in price growth and mortgage rates motivated buyers at the margin.

More than 80% of mortgage brokers expect business to grow in 2026, mainly through the strengthening of referral networks and the expansion of non-QM offerings.

While the 30-year average has hovered near the same level for weeks, the past year brought with it promising trends that may ease affordability in 2026.

Mortgage activity fell 3.8% from one week prior for the week ending Dec. 12, led by a 4% drop in refinance applications, the Mortgage Bankers Association said.

The trade group's letter to FHFA Director Bill Pulte pointed out that lenders were facing credit report price hikes for four straight years.

New-home purchase activity rose 3.1% year over year, but dropped 7% from October, the Mortgage Bankers Association said.

Remote work helped fuel migration and erased the loss of rural residents that occurred in the decade prior to the arrival of Covid, Harvard researchers found.

The threshold regards loans where the annual percentage rate is at least 1.5 percentage points higher than the average prime offer rate on first liens.

The partnership also includes a $50 million equity investment in Finance of America, securing long-term alignment between the companies.

The Department of Housing and Urban Development announced the FHA-insured loan caps for low- and high-cost areas, which are set based on conforming loan limits.

ETHZilla partnered with Zippy to bring manufactured home chattel loans on-chain as tokenized real-world assets.

Approximately 70% of home purchasers do not get more than one quote in the mortgage process, doing so could reduce their rate by 50 basis points, Zillow said.

The lowest-priced properties purchased by investors typically left them in the red when sold, according to the latest home flipping report from Attom.

The investor markets already set mortgage rates to include the 25 basis point reduction the FOMC announced, and it is too early to see the longer-term effect.