Originations

Mortgage applications fell for the fifth time in the past six weeks, led by a drop in purchases even as borrowing costs retreated.

FormFree Holdings, a mortgage technology vendor in Athens, Ga., has appointed John Sheppard, a former Coca-Cola International executive, to be its president and chief operating officer.

Digital shifts are rapidly redefining customer preferences and expectations.

Lenders hope to earn bigger profits by originating loans that fall outside the qualified mortgage guidelines, for which they can charge borrowers significantly higher interest rates, but legal risks remain.

New View Mortgage settles with New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman for $12,500.

U.S. Bancorp previously disclosed potential claims tied to the probe and “cooperated fully with the DOJ,” the company said.

As home prices rise and municipalities scrounge for revenue, rising property taxes make it harder for loan applicants to meet regulatory debt-to-income ratio limits and increase default risk on existing mortgages.

Loan officers have traditionally been on an island with borrowers, with little management involvement in an originator’s communications with clients. Increasingly, lenders need to think about systems and/or protocols to ensure that such communications are handled properly.

The number of contracts to purchase previously owned homes jumped in May by the most in more than four years, a sign the residential-real estate market is rebounding after a slow start to the year.

Private mortgage insurers will be required to have master policies that meet new guidelines in place by Oct. 1, according to announcements this week from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

KB Home reported a profit for its fiscal second quarter as selling prices and orders increased.

Treasury Secretary Lew said he would direct senior staff to bring together MBS investors and issuers to develop guidelines to reassure both sides they won’t be saddled with unfair losses.

Unless the industry is content to be a boutique player with a hugely smaller pool of potential borrowers, it had better emulate the Fed and ease on down the road.

Mortgage rates fell for a second week, lowering borrowing costs as the housing recovery gets a second wind.

The apartment sector is still pretty strong. For single-family to challenge it, employment growth may need to strengthen, notwithstanding the burgeoning market for rental house securitizations and rebounding home prices.

Mortgages were more profitable to originate in the first quarter even though a lot fewer were made, according to the accounting firm Richey May. Secondary marketing gains came to the rescue.

The Senate Banking Committee approved Julian Castro, the mayor of San Antonio, on Wednesday to head the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

It’s going to become important for mortgage originators to educate prospective homeowners on actions they can take to lower their student loan payments, and thereby move them closer to homeownership.

Mortgage applications took another dip last week despite interest rates across all loan categories decreasing.

The regulator of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will conduct a series of town-hall events to convince hundreds of thousands of U.S. borrowers with little or no equity in their homes to refinance.