Origination

Last month, new single-family home sales failed to impress, dropping nearly 10 percent, while existing-home sales saw little movement. Many in the industry are a bit skeptical of a turnaround this month due to a lack of inventory.

An analysis of millions of credit reports comparing financial behavior patterns of those who currently rent and those who have a current mortgage revealed that tens of millions of renters might not qualify for a mortgage due to a low credit score—and that a large share of renters have other outstanding debt that is currently in collections.

Seventy percent of renters still believe that renting is more affordable than owning a home and 55 percent of renters plan to continue renting for at least the next three years, according to a Freddie Mac survey.

The FHA hopes this added clarity will appease banks and large lenders that have pulled out of the FHA loan program or implemented harsher credit standards fearing lawsuits and penalties over troubled loans.

Despite the mostly stagnant homeownership report, the number of Hispanic buyers entering the market has continued to grow over the last five years. The only homeownership rate to see a spike, Hispanics will likely be the primary driver of new homeowners for the next decade and beyond.

The U.S. banking industry's period of recovery and release have come to a close and significantly higher credit costs lie ahead which will indeed affect these institutions' first quarter earnings.

Fifty-one percent of repeat homebuyers, reported that they experienced unexpected costs, fees, or surprises in their most recent home buying experience, according to a recent survey.

First-time homebuyers, including millennials, are slowly but surely making their way into the housing market and lenders need to be prepared to grab their attention and keep it.

As the Baby Boomer generation grows older and enter those "empty-nester" years, many are swapping out their long-tome homes to enter the rental market.

Despite popular beliefs, the millennial generation will eventually want to transition from their fast-paced, renter lifestyle into a single-family home with a mortgage, but the real surprise is where these young homebuyers are choosing to settle down.