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Mortgage

MBA voices support for proposed cut to community banks’ leverage ratio

Community Bank, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Federal Reserve, HWmember, Mortgage, Mortgage Bankers Association, Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, Regulatory, Regulatory Compliance /

Late last month, federal banking regulators proposed lowering the Community Bank Leverage Ratio (CBLR) for qualifying community banks and bank holding companies from 9% to 8% while extending the timeframe for certain banks to remain in the program. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), the Federal Reserve and the Federal Deposit Insurance […]

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After another lapse in coverage, trade groups urge Congress to pass long-term NFIP bill

ALTA, American Bankers Association, Congress, Flood insurance, HWmember, Legislation, Mortgage, Mortgage Bankers Association, National Flood Insurance Program /

Last week, the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) and 14 other trade groups representing insurance companies, lenders and other financial institutions urged Congress to approve a long-term reauthorization of the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). In a letter to congressional leaders dated Dec. 2, the organizations said that millions of U.S. homeowners depend on the federally

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Culture is not a perk. It is the new engine of mortgage growth

Contributors, HWmember, Mortgage, Opinion, Origination /

In the mortgage industry, we love to talk about technology, market cycles, and rate movement, but there is one topic that still gets treated like a soft skill even though it determines almost every outcome — culture. Culture is not a perk. It is not a slogan on a wall. It is the operating system

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Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac limit public housing data releases

Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, Government Lending, GSEs, Home Purchase Sentiment Index, HWmember, Inman, Mortgage /

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have curtailed the public release of their economic and housing data, prompting questions about the potential impact to the mortgage market that relies on the data, according to reporting by Inman. Fannie Mae did not release its National Housing Survey in November, marking the first missed publication in more than 15 years. Its

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Senate Democrats warn CFPB shutdown could disrupt prime interest rates

CFPB, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Democratic Party, HWmember, Interest rates, LendingLife, Mortgage, Politics, Regulatory, Senate, Trump administration /

U.S. Senate Democrats sent a letter to Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) acting director Russell Vought raising concerns that any “efforts to shutter the agency” could disrupt the publication of average prime offer rates (APOR), a key benchmark in the mortgage market. The CFPB manually calculates and publishes detailed APOR tables on a weekly basis.

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Stop marketing like it’s 2008: You’re invisible

Contributors, HWmember, Marketing, Mortgage, Opinion, Origination, Real Estate Marketing /

Mortgage marketing is stuck in 2008. Not because the tactics are old. We have webinars instead of lunch-and-learns, sponsored posts instead of postcards. The problem isn’t outdated tools. It’s the mindset, the fact that most of us never really learned how to market in the first place. That’s not an indictment of the people doing

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Rising credit report costs may push mortgage industry toward upfront fees

Credit Score, FICO, HWmember, LendingLife, Mortgage, Mortgage Broker, Origination, Retail Lending, VantageScore /

Kevin Bell, a mortgage broker at Oakmont Lending, had to adjust to a different approach to handling credit report costs when he joined the company from a retail lender earlier this year. Oakmont charges borrowers upfront, while Stockton Mortgage Corp., where Bell worked for about three years as a branch manager, follows the industry standard

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The originator’s playbook: Competing and growing in a shifting market

Contributors, HWmember, Mortgage, Mortgage Rates, Non-QM, Opinion /

As interest rates continue to ease and borrower confidence rebuilds, originators are operating in a market that demands both adaptability and creativity. To better understand how mortgage professionals are approaching today’s environment, I asked four experienced originators to share how they’re guiding clients, leveraging non-qualified mortgage (non-QM) solutions, and refining their playbooks to stay competitive.

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Making the 7-day refi reality: Modernizing mortgage appraisals

Appraisals, Appraisals and Valuations, Contributors, HWmember, Mortgage, Opinion, Refinancing /

For many borrowers, the appraisal is the most stressful step in a refinance: part mystery, part high-stakes hurdle. Will the home appraise high enough? Will it delay closing? What actually determines the final value? Lenders can help ease these concerns by adopting the right combination of technology, strategy, and partnerships to modernize the process. A

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Bayview closes acquisition of Guild, taking lender private

Guild Mortgage, Mortgage /

Bayview Asset Management has closed its acquisition of Guild Holdings Company, the parent of Guild Mortgage, in a deal that takes the lender private and removes it from the New York Stock Exchange. The transaction was finalized on November 28, according to a new 8-K filing. Under the agreement, shareholders received $20 per share in

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