Technology

When the Uniform Residential Loan Application transition deadline hits on March 1, a data set within Fannie Mae’s Desktop Underwriter Program, which many lenders have used for a host of functions, will no longer be supported and unprepared lenders could later experience disruption.

A panel appointed by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau said Congress should consider authorizing the bureau — and not the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency — to issue federal charters to fintech companies.

The transaction was led by existing investor Insight Partners, with TVC Capital as a minority partner.

As housing and lending companies try to eradicate racism and bias from their industries, automated valuation tools could help reach that goal, according to the American Enterprise Institute.

Challenger banks aimed at Blacks, Hispanics, immigrants and other underserved groups are offering financial education and support for charities in addition to basic banking services.

Remote online notarization helped originators close loans amid social distancing measures, but complex local laws remain a barrier to its widespread use.

This year, the mortgage industry demonstrated an unlikely agility and willingness to learn, but 2020 also reinforced where the industry is weak and needs to adapt — quickly — to be able to compete, Capacity Senior Adviser John Heck says.

Industry watchers make their wildest guesses (more or less) about developments in real estate finance that could rock the industry in the upcoming months.

The Conference of State Bank Supervisors filed a complaint arguing that the unique bid by the San Francisco fintech is "merely a thinly veiled effort" to evade legal challenges to the federal regulator's chartering of nonbanks.

While it's no silver bullet, automation with careful monitoring and testing can help lenders eliminate racial bias toward potential borrowers, the developers say.