Originations

Now that Jan. 10 has arrived with its many new regulations, some loan officers are thinking about whether they should stay in the mortgage business. There are other issues, however, that they should be thinking about as well.

Small lenders have cut over 14,000 employees since June.

The qualified mortgage rule, reduced refi activity and ongoing commoditization are forcing smaller institutions to take a hard look at exiting the mortgage origination business.

Americans flush with cash as they regain equity in their homes are spending more after years of pinching pennies.

The agency is reportedly auditing a number small lenders and brokers for compliance.

Applications for HECMs jumped 100% in September.

Back in the 1990s when Ed Fay graduated from business school, his goal was not to own a mortgage company, or to be the boss. Then the mortgage crisis started.

MGIC, which has a much larger inventory, only removes 1,300 loans.

Hummingbirds are inexorably tied to the flowers they feed upon. They co-evolve. This is what is about to occur as federal and state laws co-evolve to create new compliance challenges for lenders.

Among the 17 Mortgage Industry Equity Composite stocks, 10 reported price gains and seven had price declines on Thursday.

Fear of missing opportunities while the market is near its bottom will drive purchases as the Federal Reserve slowly ends the quantitative easing that puts downward pressure on rates.

New QM disclosures could delay closings when the purchase market heats up this spring.

The foreclosure inventory as of November 2013 is made up of 812,000 homes.

Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac and Ginnie Mae investment vehicles averaged returns of about -1% to -3% over the course of the year when Federal Reserve policy and long-term rate trends changed.

The Prestwick Mortgage Group offering of the servicing rights on mortgage loans with an unpaid principal balance of $187 million is getting closer to deadline.

The PGA Design Center in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., which backs a securitized $30 million mortgage sold for only $5.6 million, according to local media reports.

The bank is training the group as a way to increase lending without losing control of quality, according to Brad Blackwell, head of portfolio lending for the San Francisco-based lender.

Through December, 31% of residential properties in the foreclosure process now have some equity.

Mortgage lenders are eager to make home loans this year, but consumers may be more hesitant to borrow.