Mortgages

From finding new efficiencies to redefining the customer experience; fintechs are permanently changing financial services. But what does the actual acquisition process look like?

The coronavirus pandemic has turned every industry on its head. For lending, it exposed the need for modernized, fully digital platforms.

Banks, lenders, and fintechs have been on a path toward digitizing the mortgage process from end-to-end — long before the term coronavirus entered our daily lexicon. How has the pandemic affected progress?

Sales of previously owned homes rose more than expected in September to the highest level in 14 years as a desire for more space and record-low mortgage rates continue to support demand.

Mortgage rates fell this week to another record low, and are now over a full percentage point below where they were five years ago, according to Freddie Mac.

As of the end of July, there were more than 1 million past-due mortgages not in forbearance plans, and the majority likely would have qualified for forbearance under the CARES Act.

But an expected drop in refinancings as mortgage rates rise should more than cancel that out, resulting in declining overall volume through 2023.

HUD Deputy Secretary Brian Montgomery questioned "whether we could ever totally accept desktop-only appraisals" at the Mortgage Bankers Association conference this week.

Mortgage volume continues to surge, driven by borrowers refinancing behind record-low interest rates, according to Ellie Mae.

Southern California home sales and prices surged higher in September, the latest evidence of a hot housing market during the global COVID-19 pandemic.

The pandemic has turned stress-testing around liquidity from theory into an actual case study. And while lenders shore up their cash reserves, they explain why many have been hesitant to take advantage of Ginnie Mae's Pass-Through Assistance Program.

Leadership from those entities confirmed this week that they will move forward with a plan to add a controversial 50-basis-point charge for refinancing.

Mortgage applications decreased 0.6% from one week earlier, although a slight drop in purchase volume belied the fact that consumers are taking advantage of the current rate environment, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

The agency confirmed that loans backed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac can continue avoiding debt-to-income limits as the bureau completes a revamp of the Qualified Mortgage standard.

Minus various expenses including corporate, legal and servicing rights valuation, Ocwen had adjusted pretax income of $13.5 million.

The number of bidding wars increased for the fifth straight month, with Salt Lake City posting the highest rate of competitive listings in two years, according to Redfin.

The Bay Area real estate market continued its roaring recovery in September, as buyers took advantage of ultra-low mortgage rates to scoop up a shrinking number of homes for sale at an astonishing pace.

New-home starts increased in September on a sharp gain in single-family house construction while building permits climbed, indicating residential building had plenty of momentum at the end of the third quarter.