October 2025

KBW says loan level pricing cuts could hurt GSE earnings

If federal regulators were to reduce or do away with loan level pricing adjustments at the government-sponsored enterprises, the effect on borrowers would be modest, but it would reduce earnings at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, a Keefe, Bruyette & Woods analysis found. Lower return on equity could put a crimp in privatization plans as […]

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Apology to readers: Correction to Waterstone Mortgage earnings report

Dear Readers, The reporting team at National Mortgage News strives to give you accurate, up-to-the-minute information on what’s happening in the mortgage lending space. Unfortunately, we accidentally published inaccurate numbers in the reporting on Waterstone Mortgage’s Q3 earnings and so have corrected the report to properly reflect their performance. See the updated story here: Waterstone

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Fannie Mae names Jake Williamson acting single-family head

Fannie Mae Senior Vice President Jake Williamson will fill in as the single-family division’s chief and Tom Klein will temporarily take on general counsel responsibilities as those who previously held the positions depart. Executive Vice President Malloy Evans’ departure from the single-family post and Danielle McCoy’s exit as general counsel follow other changes at the

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Manufactured housing Is the future of affordable housing

Last month, Members of Congress were treated to an on-the-ground look at manufactured housing – the sector of the housing industry that holds the greatest promise for meeting our nation’s affordable homeownership and rental housing challenges. At the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) “Innovative Housing Showcase” in early September on the National

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Private mortgage insurance: one of the most powerful financial tools for first-time buyers

While it may seem second-nature to realtors, lenders, and others in the industry, navigating the homebuying process can be overwhelming and confusing, particularly for first-time homebuyers. It can feel like a foreign language and it’s often easy for misconceptions to take root. This includes the characterization of private mortgage insurance, which helps first-time buyers and

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There’s no such thing as a Realtor tax: Here’s what they’re missing

Benjamin Franklin famously said that nothing in life is certain except death and taxes. When I saw a recent article by Robert Bork Jr. claiming that the affordability crisis is due to some sort of “Realtor® tax,” I stopped in my tracks. The only Realtor® tax I’m aware of is the 15% self-employment tax I’m

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Weekly home sales look stronger than normal, but there’s a catch

We had a nice pop in our weekly pending home sales last week, and with mortgage rates near 2025 lows we could ask: Is housing breaking out? Not exactly.   One of the themes I really stressed this year is that weekly data can be volatile around holiday weekends. So we always look at the two

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ICE’s Andy Walden: FHA performance a “yellow flag” right now

The mortgage market could be on the cusp of a bigger turnaround.  The industry, already enjoying declining interest rates, is approaching a rate threshold that could unlock more refinance volume, said Andy Walden, head of mortgage and housing market research at Intercontinental Exchange.  “An eighth of a point move, that little mini-move, gave us about

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