Secondary Market

Could mortgage rates be on their way back? That's what today's mortgage rates just may suggest. Freddie Mac reported that the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage ticked up by a few basis points to arrive at 3.62 percent, up from 3.59 percent last week. The GSE also found interest rates for the 15-year home loan averaging 2.88 percent, with 5-year and 1-year adjustable-rate mortgages crawling to 2.76 percent and 2.69 percent, respectively. Bankrate.com likewise saw upward-bound changes in mortgage rates this week.

Massachusetts-based Mortgage Master is extending its industry footprint. The company recently announced the opening of a new operations center in Maitland, Florida, as well as the expansion of its current operations centers in Sea Grit, New Jersey and its corporate headquarters in Walpole.

Financial industry organization, Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA), is welcoming a new vice president. ICBA recently announced the appointment of Andrea Bona as VP of marketing for the association.

Despite continuing improvement in builder confidence, housing starts slipped in July to 746,000 with single-family starts accounting for decline, the Census Bureau and Department of Housing and Urban Development reported jointly Thursday. Housing permits though improved to 812,000, the highest level in almost four years. Economists surveyed by Bloomberg expected 750,000 starts and 766,000 permits in July. Total housing completions in June rose to 668,000, the highest level since June 2010.

The estate once belonging to Golden Globe-winning actress and singer Pia Zadora is back on the market, just one year after the new owners purchased the abode from Zadora for around $5 million. However, the newly listed abode now boasts a much higher price tag, and according to Trulia, the Pacific Palisades property is for sale at a stunning $26 million.

MVB Financial Corp. and its bank holding company MVB Bank, Inc., have announced a second-quarter earnings boost of 28.4 percent year-over-year, and the company says its mortgage unit should receive much of the credit for the positive quarterly results. The West Virginia-based company noted in an official statement that robust commercial loan demand and strong mortgage lending were the catalysts behind MVB Financial's successful performance.

Connecticut-based Marketcore, Inc., is receiving recognition in a recently released white paper from the National Association of Insurance Commissioner's Center for Insurance Policy and Research (CIPR). The financial services provider was cited in the group's report for its inventive Transaction Credits tool, which provides incentives to originators, aggregators, and investors who use the system to report events related to the value of underlying mortgages.

Hollywood heavyweight Jeffrey Katzenberg has put his swanky estate in Deer Park, Utah, on the market. Katzenberg, currently the CEO of DreamWorks Animation, listed the luxurious log cabin ski chalet for $20.5 million, according to Realestalker.

Builder confidence improved two points in August to 37, its highest level since February 2007, the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) reported Wednesday. Economists had expected the index to remain flat at 35. The improvement in the index in August marked the fourth straight month-month gain.

For borrowers who refinanced in the second quarter, fixed-rate mortgages dominated consumer preferences. Among those who refinanced in Q2, more than 95 percent opted for a fixed-rate mortgage, according to the Freddie Mac Quarterly Product Transition report. For those who had a hybrid ARM, 81 percent transitioned into a fixed-rate loan during the second quarter; the percentage represents the highest share in two years. In contrast, for those with a 15-year fixed rate loan, 2 percent transitioned into a hybrid ARM.