Lending and Originations

A new poll by Fannie Mae has found that 73% of respondents believe the U.S. economy is on the “wrong track,” with a vast majority of lenders feeling the economy is "very likely" or "somewhat likely" to enter a recession in the next two years.

A slowdown in inflation caused the 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage to take an 18-basis point week-over-week plunge after nearly crossing the 7%-mark the week prior.

As advancements are made in the tech world to optimize e-mortgages, the Five Star Institute and DocMagic will present a webinar discussing barriers that remain throughout the process, as well as embracing the customer service aspect of going all-digital.

Following three quarters of decline, ATTOM reports that home investment returns rose in Q2, led by a springtime surge in buyer demand, pushing seller profits back up to nearly their highest level recorded in the past decade.

“Even though buyers are trepidatious about high mortgage rates, we’re seeing bidding wars in several pockets of the market because there are so few options and even fewer good options,” said Redfin Premier Agent Jordan Hammond.

The MBA reports that new home purchase mortgage applications in June rose 26.1% year-over-year, despite mortgage rates nearing the 7% mark.

“While permits, a leading indicator of future starts, ticked up 2.2% month over month, the pace of construction slowed as single-family housing starts were down 7.0% month over month, meaning less groundbreaking on new homes, and single-family completions were down 2.8% month-over-month, meaning less supply was added to the housing stock,” said First American Deputy Chief Economist Odeta Kushi.

As markets responded positively to data showing that U.S. inflation continues to cool, the MBA reports that mortgage application volume rose week-over-week, with refi apps increasing more than 7%.

Former Goldman Sachs executive to be responsible for managing all of Angel Oak’s legal affairs and regulatory compliance measures.

Redfin reports that just 11 of every 1,000 two-and three-bedroom urban homes have changed hands so far in 2023, as options for prospective buyers continue to dry up.