Mortgage applications volume increased 0.4% on a seasonally adjusted basis for the week ending Jan. 31, according to the MBA.

Black Knight Financial Services finished yearend loan processing on a record 41 million loans last month.

But the dollar volume of newly delinquent loans is $200 million more than in December.

A lender promises to be “ready to close" loans within 15 business days of receiving an appraisal—a far cry from where the mortgage industry once imagined it was heading.

Signs of a strong housing market are evident in Nassau and Suffolk County, N.Y., with foreclosure sales and months of available housing inventory both low.

But this group is also concerned about a lack of properties for sale and rising mortgage rates.

Refinances will make up just 38% of single-family originations this year—down from 60% in 2013 and 70% in 2012, according to Freddie Mac.

The sequestration and political wrangling last year meant fewer direct RHS mortgages last year, while the safety of the federal eagle on guaranteed loans appealed to lenders.

The positive trend will continue through 2016 as originations in those categories increase to $333 billion, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

Nonbank mortgage lenders likely increased their market share during 4Q, KBW analysts say.

Foreclosure starts ended the year at the lowest level since April 2007 and pipelines are clearing in most states.

The slide in refinancing brings commitments to purchase new mortgages to its lowest level since June 2011.

Right now, there are contradictory messages between servicers of what is compliant. Utilizing technology can help servicers remain compliant to all of the industry regulation in effect today.

Alaska is the last on a very short list of states that have digitized 100% of their real estate and land inventories.

A Census Bureau reports shows little increase in first-time buyers.

Mortgage companies, including mortgage servicing and property preservation firms that invest in the wrong type of data drilling and search engine optimization tools, can be in big trouble.

The Federal Housing Administration will immediately start accepting electronic signatures on all mortgage insurance endorsement and servicing documents, and will accept e-signatures on promissory notes beginning Dec. 31.

The NAR's 2014 forecast calls for sales to hold steady year-over-year with price increases moderating.

The company's earnings rose 7% from a year earlier, to $18 million.

The first decline in Standard & Poor's closely-watched Case-Shiller home price index since November 2012 contributed to the easing in rate averages, according to Freddie Mac.