Huntington Bank — which is poised to become a $280 billion institution after its acquisitions of Cadence Bank and Veritex Bank — is aggressively expanding its mortgage footprint across Texas and the Southeast while emphasizing a “partnership” culture over a traditional acquisition model. That’s according to Carolyn Gorman, the bank’s senior vice president and mortgage […]
FirstHome IQ, a nonprofit focused on first-time homebuyer education and financial literacy, announced Thursday that it’s teaming up with the Mortgage Bankers Association to bring a coalition of loan officers to Washington, D.C., for the MBA’s National Advocacy Conference in April. The initiative aims to have at least one LO from every state advocating together
FirstHome IQ partners with MBA to boost loan officer advocacy on Capitol Hill Read More »
Rate announced Thursday that it added seven loan officers from Movement Mortgage in December 2025, a move the Chicago-headquartered Rate characterized as a “significant wave of competitive talent acquisition momentum to close out the year.” The loan officers who joined Rate are Gabriel Carter of Santa Barbara, California; Alexandra Hunt of Tampa, Florida; James Golotko
Rate adds seven former Movement Mortgage loan officers Read More »
With mortgage rates expected to remain flat for the foreseeable future, lenders of all sizes are looking for creative ways to attract creditworthy borrowers who may not fit into the conventional loan box. Below are four trends that will enable lenders to expand their reach to new borrowers in 2026: Non-QM lending goes mainstream A
4 trends that will help mortgage lenders reach new borrowers in 2026 Read More »
Mortgage rates briefly fell below 6% on Friday for the first time in nearly three years — driven by President Donald Trump’s proposed $200 billion push in the secondary market. If they stay that low, they are expected to spur refinance activity. Historically, a 22–basis-point decline in the 30-year fixed mortgage rate, such as the
Sharp decline in mortgage rates revives hopes of a refi surge, LOs say Read More »
Trust is built through relationships. It is not automatic, it is not assumed, and it is never guaranteed — it is earned. Working for a well-respected company with a long history of service does not automatically make someone a Trusted Mortgage Advisor. Trust is personal. It belongs to the relationship between the loan officer and
Trust is earned, not granted: The foundation of every successful mortgage relationship Read More »
A credit report shows a score and a list of tradelines. It does not show what to do next. When qualification hinges on small swings in a score, borrowers need coaching that translates data into actions. That is where modern loan officers add the most value: not by interpreting a score in isolation, but by
Don Goettling, a nearly 40-year veteran of the mortgage and real estate industry, announced last week that he’s committing full time to his role as CEO of Momentum Builder, the company he co-founded in 2018. The organization, which provides resources for housing professionals — including coaching, workshops, events and technology tools — also oversees the
Don Goettling goes all in with Momentum Builder Read More »
Loan officer Elizabeth Galan, who works for UMortgage in Cincinnati, has had to pivot her business strategy in 2025. Galan focuses on serving Hispanic borrowers — about 80% of her clients — in cities like Cincinnati and Dayton, Ohio, as well as northern Kentucky. Many of them hold non-permanent resident status, meaning they live in
How Trump’s immigration policies reshape mortgage strategies Read More »
loanDepot has filed a motion to dismiss a class-action lawsuit in Maryland alleging violations of loan officer (LO) compensation rules and borrower steering, arguing the plaintiffs failed to show they suffered a “concrete injury.” The lawsuit, filed in July by five borrowers who obtained mortgages from 2019 to 2021, claims loanDepot engaged in a “sophisticated,
loanDepot challenges class-action suit tied to LO comp rules, steering Read More »