Where the Los Angeles housing market stands and where the wildfires could take it
The wildfires in Los Angeles have caused unspeakable damage, heartbreak and loss of life. As of Monday, the five major fires have burned about 60 square miles in the LA area and 24 people have been killed. While the current focus is rightfully on containing the blazes and protecting residents, it’s
Read MoreloanDepot promotes Bart Evans to Southeast regional vice president

Top 20 U.S. mortgage lender loanDepot announced the promotion of regional sales director Bart Evans to regional vice president for the Southeast region.Evans will help manage retail business in states like Alabama, Arkansas and Tennessee. He will report directly to senior vice president of productio
Read MoreZillow Group hires Zuhairah Washington

AFR’s Rob Pieklo explores the state of the 2025 wholesale mortgage market

In a new episode of 10 Minute Talks, HousingWire President Diego Sanchez sits down for an in-depth conversation with Rob Pieklo, president and chief operating officer of American Financial Resources (AFR).During the 10-minute conversation, Pieklo explores his new focus on developing AFR’s wholesale
Read MoreHousing demand positive, but at risk from higher mortgage rates
Our weekly pending contract data is still positive year over year, but only by 1%, as demand growth has slowed amid higher mortgage rates. What does this mean for the spring housing market? Let’s take a look at the data. Weekly pending salesThe latest weekly pending contract data from Altos Research
Read MoreReal estate investors face a daunting winter storm

It’s mostly doom and gloom for real estate investors heading into 2025, according to a quarterly survey released this week by RCN Capital and CJ Patrick Co. Their Winter 2024 Investor Sentiment Survey showed that only 35% percent of investors consider the market to be “better” or “much better” than
Read MoreAs LA fires burn, reverse mortgage industry emphasizes need for servicer, insurer contacts

With more than 153,000 people currently under evacuation orders in the Los Angeles area due to multiple wildfires, an estimated 10 deaths and thousands of structures burned, the reverse mortgage industry at multiple levels is mobilizing with a clear, overarching message: Impacted borrowers must get
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Redfin has started 2025 with a round of layoffs. The Seattle-based brokerage company laid off 46 employees on Thursday.In a statement emailed to HousingWire, a Redfin spokesperson noted that most of the impacted employees were managers in the company’s headquarters, program and field leadership role
Read More Rep. Maxine Waters pushes for serious investigation with proposed wildfire bill

Less than 10 days into 2025, California is experiencing a multibillion-dollar wildfire disaster that is further shaking up the state’s already vulnerable insurance coverage. Rep. Maxine Waters (D), who represents a portion of the Los Angeles area that is impacted by the damage, is ready to reintrodu
Read MoreHousing resources and help for victims of the LA fires

Real estate and mortgage firms are stepping up to help housing professionals and the Southern California community as wildfires ravage the area. Here’s a roundup of the companies and people offering help, which will be updated with new information as it becomes available.Help for those in the commun
Read MoreJobs week data is keeping mortgage rates above 7%
Today’s jobs report beat expectations, and in fact, the labor data was solid for jobs week, which means mortgage rates will stay elevated because it’s always about labor over inflation when talking about rates. Now, the labor market is getting softer from its torrid pace of job creation and wage gro
Read MoreHUD secretary nominee Scott Turner to have Senate confirmation hearing next week

The U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs announced that it will hold a confirmation hearing on Thursday, Jan. 16, for Scott Turner to lead the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).Scott TurnerTurner was one of a flurry of cabinet-level and other leadership no
Read MoreSenior-held home equity falls slightly in Q3 2024

A reduction of 0.3% in home values and a slight increase in senior-held mortgage debt have led to the total amount of senior-held home equity dropping from its all-time high.This is according to the latest edition of the Reverse Mortgage Market Index (RMMI), a quarterly report compiled by the Nation
Read MoreBergen County housing market flatlines on minuscule inventory
It’s no secret that stubbornly high mortgage rates and sinking inventory levels are stunting housing markets across the country, particularly in places where high home prices are already squeezing would-be buyers.But Bergen County, New Jersey, is taking it to another level. Inventory and new listing
Read MoreIncenter Lender Services hires two VPs to oversee national accounts

Incenter Lender Services, a group of companies that help nonbank and depository mortgage lenders nationwide, announced this week the hiring of two new vice presidents. Kathleen Rose and Wayne Brown will join Incenter’s leadership team.Both executives will oversee national accounts, tapping into the
Read MoreDecember jobs report comes in stronger than expected

While the unemployment rate was up compared to the start of the year, the job market ended the year up, with 256,000 jobs added to the economy in December according to data released Friday by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).Unemployment finished the year at a rate of 4.1%, down from 4.2% t
Read MoreA complete guide to understanding pocket listings

According to BatchService and ResiClub Analytics, there were approximately 1.2 million “pocket listings” or off-market real estate sales in the United States in 2024, with the vast majority happening in Texas and Florida. Pocket listings are more common in some areas of the country than others, yet
Read MoreFrom Foot Locker to 100+ closed deals a year (*in under five years)

In 2019, Chris A. Williams had a problem. He was working two jobs — selling shoes at Foot Locker and cleaning cars at Enterprise — but he wanted more out of life. He was 20 years old. He tried college, but like many young Americans today, he decided the math didn’t work — too much debt and too few o
Read MoreNew CFPB report looks at reverse mortgage activity in 2023

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) in December released its 2023 Mortgage Market Activity and Trends report, which included a brief look at activity from the reverse mortgage industry based on Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) data from 2023.While the majority of the data largely excl
Read MoreXactus hires Mike Brown to oversee product strategy and market innovation

Mortgage verification services firm Xactus announced this week that it appointed Mike Brown, its former chief integration officer, as its new chief product officer.This hiring underscores the company’s commitment to technology and product innovation. Brown will oversee Xactus’ product life cycle fro
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