Origination

In housing markets where home values are constantly rising, first-time buyers often struggle with coming up with a down payment and end up renting versus buying a home.

Initial mortgage payments are already affordable to millennials in 73 out of the 100 largest housing markets in the country, according to Trulia—in other words, the initial mortgage payments make up 20 percent or less out of that household’s monthly income. In 17 out of the largest housing markets, however, a median price home is defined as unaffordable to millennials.

Commentary is an ongoing series on theMReport.com that focuses on opinions, ideas, and insights from experts across mortgage banking. With skyrocketing rents in many parts of the country, buying a home is beginning to look more attractive to millennials. Jeannie Smith, VP of sales and a home loan officer at Guardian Mortgage discusses how Millennials desire homeownership but struggle financially and how the mortgage industry can help.

Earlier this week, the Federal Reserve released their Senior Loan Officer Opinion Survey on Bank Lending Practices, which found that banks lowered mortgage lending standards in the third quarter of 2015. However, new housing risk research shows that the survey is "flawed."

Eased credit access is allowing more people to be eligible for mortgage loans, especially among middle-income blacks and Hispanics, but despite the uptick, they still lag behind in the housing market recovery.

Two days after fellow GSE Freddie Mac reported a net loss of $475 million for Q3, Fannie Mae reported a net income of $2 billion for the third quarter and a comprehensive income of $2.2 billion.

Homeownership is an important aspect of the American way of life, and while many desire to own a home, the Millennial generation often struggles to break into the housing market due to soaring home prices and tight lending standards.

Mortgage originations are soaring but bank's are not reflecting this rise in their portfolios, which are suffering from new tax policies, fluctuating interest rates, and regulatory changes in mortgage lending.

The cost of building a new single-family home far surpasses the average price tag on an existing home, but aside from mortgage payment differences, there are pros and cons to both options.

A slowdown in refinances and purchase mortgage loans drove overall applications down this week, according to the Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey from the Mortgage Bankers Association.