Jerome Powell’s tenure as Federal Reserve chair is coming to an end as the Department of Justice (DOJ) has ended its investigation of alleged cost overruns on the Fed headquarters’ renovations. This paves the way for Kevin Warsh to head the Fed — maybe as soon as May. The timing couldn’t be more perfect, as […]
The outlook for mortgage rates as DOJ clears Fed path for Warsh Read More »
More than three years after mortgage rates began their climb from historic lows, a subtle but significant housing market shift is underway. Homeowners are finally letting go of sub-5% rates, “comeback buyers” are re-entering the search and regional markets are moving in opposite directions — all shaping what Coldwell Banker Real Estate calls a spring
Coldwell Banker: ‘Life doesn’t stop’ as comeback buyers return Read More »
Key insight: The Department of Justice will close its investigation into Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell related to his comments regarding building renovations to the Fed’s Washington headquarters, a probe even many Republicans found baseless. Forward look: The conclusion of the probe clears the way for Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., to vote to confirm Kevin
Justice Department to drop Powell investigation Read More »
With zero change versus Thursday’s latest levels, the 30yr fixed mortgage rate index maintained a 0.03% range for the entire week (and 0.04% going back to last Tuesday). At 6.32%, today’s mark is close enough to Friday’s 6.29% to say rates are hovering at the lowest levels in more than a month. The sideways drift
Rates End Week Close Enough to Recent Lows Read More »
Government mortgage-backed securities guarantor Ginnie Mae announced that it’s changing how it will be tracking delinquencies in monthly issuer reporting to account for impacts from a rule update. Processing Content To address the uptick in a large number of older loans entering trial payment plans as a result of the Federal Housing Administration’s adjustment to
Ginnie Mae pauses delinquency rules amid FHA waterfall shift Read More »
Key insight: Elevated payoffs and paydowns in Flagstar’s commercial real estate portfolio were driving factors in the bank’s decision to lower its earnings guidance for 2026 and 2027. What’s at stake: The bank is trying to remix its loan portfolio as part of a turnaround that involves reducing its historically high concentration in commercial real
Flagstar pares back earnings outlook amid elevated CRE payoffs Read More »
Early-year rate movements led prepayments to a near four-year high in March, while delinquency trends also showed overall improvement typical of seasonal patterns, according to Intercontinental Exchange. Processing Content Mortgage prepayment speeds jumped 24 basis points to 1.06% from a level of 0.82% recorded in February, with the pace accelerating in three out of the
Prepayments hit 4-year high after mortgage rates eased Read More »
PrimeLending, Hilltop Holdings’ mortgage unit (through its PlainsCapital Bank subsidiary) reduced its pretax losses 72% year-over-year. But the parent company gave a warning for the entire organization (including Hilltop Securities) that its future performance in 2026 is likely to be affected by things outside of its control. Processing Content Hilltop cited challenging changes in the
Hilltop’s PrimeLending cuts pretax losses by over 70% in 1Q Read More »
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) on Friday dropped its investigation into the Federal Reserve regarding Jerome Powell’s congressional testimony on the central bank’s headquarters renovation. The decision could ease the path for Kevin Warsh‘s confirmation as Powell’s successor. Jeanine Pirro, U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, announced that she’s closing the investigation and
DOJ drops probe tied to Fed, potentially easing path for Warsh confirmation Read More »
In its quarterly earnings report a few months ago, M/I Homes business executives said the top-15-ranked homebuilder would maintain a spec-heavy approach – carefully and methodically – to build sales momentum leading up to and into the spring selling season. The latest quarterly financial and operational performance attests to M/I’s embrace of that strategy, as
M/I Homes hews to its order pace; margins come under pressure Read More »