• CFPB considers ban on charging buyers for lender’s title policy

    CFPB considers ban on charging buyers for lender’s title policy,Brooklee Han, Flávia Furlan Nunes

    The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is considering a ban on mortgage banks charging homebuyers for the lender’s title insurance policy, according to a report by Bloomberg.Lender’s title policies protect lenders from issues that may arise with the title of the property, but they are paid by the

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  • Heartland MLS joins forces with Down Payment Resource

    Heartland MLS joins forces with Down Payment Resource,Sarah Marx

    Kansas City-based Heartland Multiple Listing Service (MLS) has announced a strategic integration with Down Payment Resource (DPR) to enhance accessibility to homeownership for residents across the Greater Kansas City area.DPR, known in the housing industry for its database and homebuyer assistance p

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  • WSFS president talks motivation for reverse mortgage survey, potential future action

    WSFS president talks motivation for reverse mortgage survey, potential future action,Chris Clow

    Last month, Northeast regional lender WSFS Mortgage released the results of a survey that measured reverse mortgage product sentiments. It found that more people seem to be aware of the potential value that a reverse mortgage could provide for older homeowners, including as a tool to age in place an

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  • Keller Williams named to yet another profit-sharing lawsuit

    Keller Williams named to yet another profit-sharing lawsuit,Sarah Marx

    Keller Williams was named to an eighth class-action lawsuit that takes issue with alterations made to the brokerage’s profit-sharing program. In the past few weeks, seven agents formerly affiliated with Keller Williams — Jerri Moulder, David Bueker, Robert Hill, Kevin Ortiz, Edward Fordyce, Paul Dav

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  • Fannie Mae: Prohibited/subjective language in appraisal reports has declined

    Fannie Mae: Prohibited/subjective language in appraisal reports has declined,Chris Clow

    Fannie Mae this month issued a recent progress report on its ongoing effort to scan appraisal reports for “prohibited or subjective language,” updating stakeholders on a process that began in 2021 to rid appraisal reports and valuation decisions of verbiage that could be construed as contributing to

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  • Gen X is already looking for housing appropriate for aging in place

    Gen X is already looking for housing appropriate for aging in place,Chris Clow

    Baby boomers are exhibiting an overwhelming desire to age in place in their own homes, but their children — largely members of Generation X — are also making their desires felt by seeking out homes that can accommodate their needs as they get older, according to a recent report from the New York Tim

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  • Mortgage rates change little ahead of big inflation report

    Mortgage rates change little ahead of big inflation report,Sarah Marx

    Mortgage rates remained unchanged last week despite the release of the stronger-than-expected jobs report. HousingWire’s Mortgage Rates Center showed the average 30-year fixed rate for conventional loans at 7.16% on Tuesday, unchanged from one week earlier. At the same time one year ago, the 30-year

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  • Rocket launches patented AI-driven tech platform

    Rocket launches patented AI-driven tech platform,Flávia Furlan Nunes

    Rocket Mortgage’s bet on artificial intelligence (AI) has resulted in a patented platform called Rocket Logic, which can automatically process nearly 90% of data points extracted from documents in a month and reduce by 25% the number of times a professional interacts with a mortgage loan year over y

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  • Opinion: Agencies are key to fixing housing affordability

    Opinion: Agencies are key to fixing housing affordability,Scott Olson

    It’s an election year, and housing affordability appears to be a big concern for voters. So, it’s not surprising to see the administration and members of Congress announcing big-ticket legislative initiatives to boost homeownership — like a first-time homebuyer tax credit and the Neighborhood Invest

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  • UWM offers legal support to brokers, accuses Rocket of ‘connections’ with Hunterbrook report

    UWM offers legal support to brokers, accuses Rocket of ‘connections’ with Hunterbrook report,Flávia Furlan Nunes

    In a message to mortgage brokers, United Wholesale Mortgage (UWM) defended itself from the Hunterbrook Media report that claims the lender orchestrated a scheme to steer loans. The wholesale lender said it’s offering legal support to partners in case they are sued and once again accused Rocket Mortg

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  • FHFA appoints artificial intelligence czar

    FHFA appoints artificial intelligence czar,Chris Clow

    The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) announced this week that it has appointed Tracy Stephan to serve as its chief artificial intelligence officer (CAIO), adding the position to her existing duties leading the agency’s Office of Financial Technology.Stephan is described as a 25-year veteran in

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  • Insurance companies rely on aerial images to ditch risky properties 

    Insurance companies rely on aerial images to ditch risky properties ,Sarah Marx

    Insurance companies are leveraging aerial images of homes to drop properties deemed too risky, according to a report by The Wall Street Journal. Consumer advocates are concerned that customers are not always able to challenge images that could be out of date or inaccurate. The increased use of aeria

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  • Reverse mortgage volume, HMBS issuance see improvement in March

    Reverse mortgage volume, HMBS issuance see improvement in March,Chris Clow

    After a few months of downward data in its performance metrics, the reverse mortgage industry saw a slightly different story play out in March that should come as welcome news.Home Equity Conversion Mortgage (HECM) endorsements increased 8.3% to 2,058 loans in March, an increase helped by new case n

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  • What will happen to home prices with more inventory?

    What will happen to home prices with more inventory?,Mike Simonsen

    With the Easter holiday last week, data for housing inventory, new listings and the pace of new contracts started all took a breather from their growth pace. Each of those notched down from a week ago and compared to a year ago. This is a holiday effect and it should all be reversed back onto the ye

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  • MBA advocates for remote reverse mortgage counseling in Mass.

    MBA advocates for remote reverse mortgage counseling in Mass.,Chris Clow

    The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA)’s policy advocacy group, the Mortgage Action Alliance (MAA), is urging its members in the state of Massachusetts to support the continued use of remote telephone and video counseling for reverse mortgages in the state following the lapse of an exemption allowin

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  • CFPB report focuses on ‘discount points,’ but paints an incomplete picture

    CFPB report focuses on ‘discount points,’ but paints an incomplete picture,Chris Clow

    The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) on Friday issued a report indicating that it is taking a closer look at the impact of “discount points” on mortgage transactions, noting that use of the practice has picked up over the past two years with undetermined value for mortgage borrowers.“The

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  • The Real Brokerage settles Umpa commission lawsuit for $9.25M

    The Real Brokerage settles Umpa commission lawsuit for $9.25M,Brooklee Han

    Fast-growing, publicly traded The Real Brokerage announced Monday that it had reached a settlement agreement with the plaintiffs in the Umpa commission lawsuit. The Umpa suit is the only commission lawsuit in which Real has been named as a defendant. The brokerage will pay $9.25 million into a quali

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  • DOJ will intervene in NAR’s commission lawsuit settlement: KBW analysts

    DOJ will intervene in NAR’s commission lawsuit settlement: KBW analysts,Brooklee Han

    Analysts at investment bank Keefe, Bruyette & Woods believe that the Department of Justice will intervene in Sitzer/Burnett commission lawsuit after receiving the green light to reopen its investigation into the National Association of Realtors.In a note published on Sunday, the analysts wrote that

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  • NAR partners with SoFi

    NAR partners with SoFi,Sarah Marx

    The National Association of Realtors (NAR) unveiled a new partnership with  SoFi on Monday. As part of the agreement, NAR members and their clients will be eligible to receive exclusive rates and discounts on mortgages, student loan refinancing, and personal loans, among other perks.“This partnershi

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  • Premise of the Hunterbrook Media thesis on UWM is ‘misplaced:’ BTIG analysts

    Premise of the Hunterbrook Media thesis on UWM is ‘misplaced:’ BTIG analysts,Flávia Furlan Nunes

    United Wholesale Mortgage’s (UWM) revenue margins “don’t stand out like” one would expect if the company was overcharging borrowers, analysts at BTIG said on Monday. The comments follow a Hunterbrook Media report from last week stating that UWM pressures brokers to send loans its way, resulting in h

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