When husband and wife Rick and Patty Arvielo set out to establish a strong corporate culture for their company, New American Funding, they turned to a leadership seminar from online retailer Zappos.

National Mortgage News is pleased to present the inaugural Best Mortgage Companies to Work For, a survey and awards program dedicated to identifying and recognizing the industry's best employers and providing organizations with valuable employee feedback.

The Best Mortgage Companies to Work For study is a collaboration between National Mortgage News and the Best Companies Group, which conducts extensive employee surveys and reviews employer reports on benefits and policies.

A new marketing tool lets consumers start the mortgage prequalification process by sending a text message, providing would-be borrowers with credit and loan program details and offering lenders a low-cost source of leads.

With its bolstered fundraising cache, the Mortgage Bankers Association Political Action Committee should hold an increased influence over the industry's policy and regulation issues in the coming year.

Mortgage technology is rapidly advancing, with incumbents and new entrants scrambling to take advantage of developments in artificial intelligence and automation. The goal? Beat the customer expectations set by Amazon and Uber, not just other lenders, says KPMG Managing Director Teresa Blake.

As the mortgage industry braces for even more market uncertainty in 2019, emerging technologies that improve the borrower experience and streamline back-office tasks may provide a glimmer of hope to beleaguered lenders.

The biggest question is whether new CFPB Director Kathy Kraninger will deviate from the pro-industry policies of her predecessor, or bring continuity.

Consumers traditionally pick the lender with the best rate and the lowest payment, but in a competitive marketplace, the customer's digital mortgage experience is often the first tiebreaker.

Maria Vullo is stepping down as head of New York's banking and insurance regulator after three years in which she created a national model for cybersecurity regulations at banks and fought back against federal attempts to chip away at payday-lending rules.

Texas Capital Bank, which already provides warehouse financing for e-mortgages, will now purchase these loans off those lines as it looks to increase liquidity for this product.

Plaid, which moves consumer data between financial institutions and fintechs, could expand overseas as part of a broad growth plan, according to a venture investor.

Republicans on the House Oversight Committee concluded that last year’s massive data breach at Equifax was fully preventable, but stopped short of recommending new laws aimed at averting future hacks. Democrats called the final report a “missed opportunity.”

Executives urged the consumer bureau at a public meeting to keep a closer eye on artificial intelligence innovations developed by fintech firms that are subject to less regulation.

Wire fraud is considered a consumer and title agent issue, but the millions of dollars it's diverting from home purchase transactions make it an issue mortgage lenders need to address, too.

Hometown Lenders Inc. will acquire TotalChoice Mortgage in a move to expand its geographic footprint and meet its goal of growing annual originations from $1 billion to $5 billion.

Equifax is supporting mortgage lender customer retention efforts with a new tool that predicts the likelihood that a lead will apply for a loan within the coming months.

Fintech adoption among real estate and title agents is accelerating, though their optimism on the housing market has tanked, according to First American Financial Corp.

Private mortgage insurers are moving away from traditional rate cards in favor of more granular risk-based pricing to make their products more competitive and efficient for lenders.

Ellie Mae plans to more quickly adapt to an evolving digital mortgage landscape with Amazon's help rebuilding from the inside-out.