• 3 in 5 Gen Z renters are rent burdened, but Millennials had it worse

    3 in 5 Gen Z renters are rent burdened, but Millennials had it worse,
  • DOJ sues Rocket, appraisal companies over alleged discrimination

    DOJ sues Rocket, appraisal companies over alleged discrimination,Flávia Furlan Nunes

    Another regulator has sued Rocket Mortgage for allegedly discriminating against a Black homeowner by undervaluing her home during an appraisal in Colorado three years ago. And the Detroit-based lender believes it’s a “massive overreach.” On Monday, the U.S. Department of Justice—following a move mad

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  • Down payment assistance programs continue to grow, with an average benefit of $17K

    Down payment assistance programs continue to grow, with an average benefit of $17K,Kennedy Edgerton

    As the year comes to a close, states are adding more down payment assistance (DPA) programs to help first-time buyers achieve homeownership.Down Payment Resource — a national database for connecting prospective homebuyers to financial assistance programs — recently released its newest Homeownership

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  • NAR faces new suit alleging antitrust violations, discrimination

    NAR faces new suit alleging antitrust violations, discrimination,Brooklee Han

    The legal woes continue for the National Association of Realtors (NAR). On Wednesday, Maurice Muhammad — the broker of Progressive Realty — filed a complaint in U.S. District Court in Pennsylvania claiming that NAR, the Pennsylvania Association of Realtors (PAR) and the Greater Lehigh Valley MLS (GL

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  • Judge denies Texas Capital Bank motion for summary judgment in Ginnie Mae dispute

    Judge denies Texas Capital Bank motion for summary judgment in Ginnie Mae dispute,Chris Clow

    An effort seeking a partial summary judgment in a case brought by Texas Capital Bank (TCB) against Ginnie Mae over reverse mortgage-related collateral has been denied by presiding Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk, according to a court filing reviewed by HousingWire’s Reverse Mortgage Daily (RMD).TCB sought s

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  • Looking for clarity in the Clear Cooperation debate

    Looking for clarity in the Clear Cooperation debate,Brooklee Han

    The controversial Clear Cooperation Policy from the National Association of Realtors continues to spark debate — for several reasons — among real estate professionals. (Image generated by AI in Midjourney)With the Aug. 17 implementation deadline for the business practice changes outlined in National

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  • Which metros are seeing a surge of home sellers?

    Which metros are seeing a surge of home sellers?,Mike Simonsen

    Despite the Florida hurricanes, and in the face of recently rising mortgage rates, unsold inventory of homes on the market climbed this week by about 1%. We’ve been expecting inventory to climb, and to tick up again next week before seasonal inventory declines start in November. The seasonal changes

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  • Florida has built 77,000 new homes in high-risk flood areas

    Florida has built 77,000 new homes in high-risk flood areas,Chris Clow

    Since 2019, the state of Florida has built more than 77,000 new properties in areas with a high risk of flooding. This is the most among all states, according to an analysis by climate-modeling firm First Street Foundation on behalf of the The Wall Street Journal.The construction activity is likely

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  • Defendants seek dismissal of Homie’s antitrust lawsuit

    Defendants seek dismissal of Homie’s antitrust lawsuit,Brooklee Han

    The remaining defendants in Homie Technologies’ antitrust suit are seeking to have the case dismissed. On Friday, the National Association of Realtors (NAR), Anywhere Real Estate, Keller Williams Realty, HomeServices of America and RE/MAX filed motions to dismiss the suit, which was originally filed

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  • Mutual of Omaha granted more time to respond to Longbridge allegations

    Mutual of Omaha granted more time to respond to Longbridge allegations,Chris Clow

    Mutual of Omaha Mortgage has been given more time to respond to allegations against it in a case that accuses the lender of operating manipulative websites that skew reverse mortgage reviews in its favor.The suit, brought by reverse mortgage competitor Longbridge Financial, alleges that Mutual of Om

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  • Survey shows veterans are more likely than civilians to buy homes in the next year

    Survey shows veterans are more likely than civilians to buy homes in the next year,Kennedy Edgerton

    In a housing market shaped by uncertainty, military veterans and service members are emerging as some of the most confident and prepared homebuyers, outpacing their civilian counterparts.That’s according to a recent index released by Veterans United Home Loans to measure the financial health and opt

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  • Why housing demand is now showing year-over-year growth

    Why housing demand is now showing year-over-year growth,Logan Mohtashami

    We have had three weeks of positive year-over-year growth in both purchase application data and weekly pending contract data, with last week showing a noticeable jump from last year. Now the dose of reality: last year at this time mortgage rates were heading toward 8%, and even though 2023 showed re

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  • Open house power up: A realtor’s guide

    Open house power up: A realtor’s guide,Debbie De Grote

    Important Note* Check your local forms for options around discussing buyer agency with visiting prospects. Follow your local MLS and broker rules and regulations and master how to speak to the prospects about their options.Open houses are still a fundamental pillar of the business. NAR reports that

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  • One mortgage lender abandons the Florida condo market

    One mortgage lender abandons the Florida condo market,James Kleimann

    California-based Provident Funding Associates LLC is getting out of the Florida condo lending business, it told broker partners on Friday. In an email sent Friday morning, Provident said that it would “no longer be accepting new applications for condominiums” effective that day. Provident told broke

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  • The month in reverse mortgage rates: October 2024

    The month in reverse mortgage rates: October 2024,Dan Hultquist

    When older homeowners wish to access a portion of their equity, there are multiple options.Of course, selling the home is generally not desirable. A cash-out refinance is also not a prudent pathway for retirees. A refinance not only saddles the homeowner with a required monthly payment but will also

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  • Where the presidential candidates stand on elder care issues

    Where the presidential candidates stand on elder care issues,Chris Clow

    With a little more than two weeks remaining until Election Day, the policy positions of the major political parties’ nominees for president — Democrat Kamala Harris and Republican Donald Trump — have been under the microscope.Each of their potential policies toward the Federal Housing Administration

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  • The Fed’s monetary policy is stifling new construction

    The Fed’s monetary policy is stifling new construction,Logan Mohtashami

    Since mortgage rates have headed higher again, I was anticipating that today’s housing starts report would be the last decent print before the effects of higher mortgage rates hit the builders, but even this report was disappointing. We had a good few months of positive builder confidence data for t

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  • Ruoff Mortgage teams with Calque on ‘buy before you sell’ offering

    Ruoff Mortgage teams with Calque on ‘buy before you sell’ offering,Kennedy Edgerton

    Indiana-based lender Ruoff Mortgage is making a move designed to help more homeowners get into new homes with ease. Ruoff Mortgage is teaming up with fintech company Calque to offer two “buy before you sell“ programs to customers. The Trade-In Mortgage and the Contingency Buster will be available to

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  • FHLBanks respond to FHFA report on affordable housing investments

    FHLBanks respond to FHFA report on affordable housing investments,Chris Clow

    The Council of Federal Home Loan Banks (FHLBanks) lauded this week’s release of a report from the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), which highlighted the banks’ growth in support of affordable housing and community development efforts in 2023.The report detailed FHLBanks’ activity across severa

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  • Lawmakers, MBA call out FICO for potential price hikes

    Lawmakers, MBA call out FICO for potential price hikes,Chris Clow

    A coalition of 34 Democratic senators and representatives submitted a letter this week to President Joe Biden, urging him to direct the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) to investigate the pricing practices of Fair Isaac Corp. (FICO)’s credit reports.The letter also encourages the president to direct

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