Industry Briefs Apr. 5, 2021

Auction.com: Foreclosure Sales Generate $1.2B in Surplus Funds for Distressed Homeowners

Auction.com, Irvine, Calif., released its 2021 Seller Strategy Report, based on an analysis of more than 70,000 properties brought to foreclosure auction on the Auction.com platform in the four quarters ending in Q1 2021.

The analysis found third-party foreclosure auction sales not only yield the highest price execution relative to foreclosure credit bid — 17 percentage points higher than price execution for traditional REO sales — but also are increasingly generating surplus funds above total debt owed to the foreclosing lender. More than 40 percent of all foreclosure sales in 2019 and 2020 generated surplus funds, more than double the percentage with surplus funds between 2012 and 2015, according to data from the Auction.com platform. More than $1.2 billion in surplus funds have been generated by third-party foreclosure sales on the Auction.com platform in the past five years.

“Even among properties with no perceived equity — those with a specified credit bid at foreclosure — 16 percent ended up becoming full payoffs, demonstrating the power of a transparent auction marketplace to uncover hidden equity for distressed homeowners,” said Ali Haralson, Auction.com President.

CFPB Makes 2020 HMDA Data on Mortgage Lending Available

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau released Home Mortgage Disclosure Act Modified Loan Application Register data for 2020; the data were published on the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council’s HMDA Platform for 4,400 HMDA filers. The published data contain loan-level information filed by financial institutions, modified to protect privacy.

“HMDA data can help determine whether financial institutions are serving the housing needs of their communities and can better drive public-sector investment, which can attract private investment to areas where it is needed,” said CFPB Acting Director Dave Uejio. “The data can help pinpoint potential discriminatory lending patterns, and address unjustified disparities in lending outcomes and credit pricing that drive racial and economic inequality.”

The 2020 HMDA Loan Application Register data can be found at: https://ffiec.cfpb.gov/data-publication/modified-lar/2019.

National Realty of Brevard Partners with Adwerx Platform

Adwerx said National Realty of Brevard joined the Adwerx Enterprise Automated Advertising Platform.

Ads appear on Facebook, Instagram popular mobile apps and premium websites that consumers and potential home buyers visit on a daily basis. By implementing the Adwerx Enterprise Automated Advertising Platform, National Realty of Brevard is better equipped to attract, develop and support its real estate professionals.

Top of Mind’s Surefire CRM Integrates with LendingPad LOS

Top of Mind Networks, Atlanta, announced an integration between its Surefire CRM and the LendingPad suite of loan origination solutions.

The direct API connection enables real-time sharing of contact records and loan milestones between LendingPad and Surefire CRM, which in turn allows lenders to automate delivery of personalized communication that enhances the loan applicant experience and keeps deals moving forward. The system can automatically “nudge” applicants who need to submit documents to complete their loan applications. And once an application is complete, Surefire CRM keeps all stakeholders up to date on the loan’s status at every stage in the origination process, eliminating the need for borrowers and loan originators to play phone-tag.

Ginnie Mae Extends Temporary Relief from Acceptable Delinquency Threshold Requirement

Ginnie Mae, Washington, D.C., issued All Participant Memorandum 20-06, “Treatment of Mortgage Delinquency Ratios for Issuers Affected by COVID-19″ and extended in the APM 20-17: “Extension of Temporary Relief from the Acceptable Delinquency Threshold Requirement” from July 31, 2021 through January 31, 2022 (December 2021 investor reporting).

Ginnie Mae said due to the continuing impact of COVID-19 on forbearance levels and delinquency rates, Ginnie Mae is further extending the exemptions that were announced in the APM 20-06: “Treatment of Mortgage Delinquency Ratios for Issuers Affected by COVID-19″ and extended in the APM 20-17: “Extension of Temporary Relief from the Acceptable Delinquency Threshold Requirement” from July 31, 2021 through January 31, 2022 (December 2021 investor reporting).

Ginnie Mae will continue to exclude any delinquencies occurring on or after April 2020 for the purposes of enforcing the provisions in Ch. 18, Part 3, §§ C & D. Ginnie Mae will provide this exclusion automatically through January 31, 2022 to Issuers that were compliant with Ginnie Mae’s delinquency rate thresholds as demonstrated by their April 2020 investor accounting report, reflecting March 2020 servicing data. Issuers do not need to change any aspect of their monthly report to benefit from this exclusion and must continue to report loans in forbearance as delinquent in accordance with established procedures.

Freddie Mac: Analysis Shows Impact of Expanded Benefits on Unemployed Renters During COVID-19

A new analysis from Freddie Mac Multifamily, McLean, Va., examines how expanded unemployment benefits and federal stimulus payments affected unemployed renters’ income during COVID-19 and its potential impact on the ability to pay rent.

“The COVID-19 pandemic created huge shifts in unemployment and put uncertainty on working families about how they would pay their rents,” said Steve Guggenmos, vice president of Freddie Mac Multifamily Research and Modeling. “And while economic indicators and unemployment levels have shifted throughout the pandemic, the availability of benefits and stimulus continues to play a role in how renters and the apartment market as a whole can weather the pandemic.”

The paper found in more than half the states, benefits nearly replaced pre-pandemic income: In 37 out of 50 states plus the District of Columbia, a median income renter/worker would receive less income from their unemployment benefits than if they were working. However, in well over half of states, a median income renter/worker who lost their job at the onset of the pandemic will receive within 10% of their lost income in benefits, essentially replacing their pre-pandemic income.

The paper also reported on average, between 30% and 40% of benefits would pay for a median-priced rental: In more than half the states, a median income renter/worker would be paying between 30% and 40% of their combined unemployment benefits and stimulus payments to afford a median-priced rental unit. In 17 other states, a median income renter could pay less than 30% of their benefits and stimulus and afford a median-priced rental unit.

Redfin: Five Ways Housing Market Will Change After Pandemic

Redfin, Seattle, said the post-pandemic housing market will offer some relief for homebuyers:

1. Home values will grow as the economy recovers, but at a slower pace as higher mortgage rates temper demand;
2. More people will list their homes for sale;
3. The condo market will heat up;
4. Suburbs will start to feel more like cities; and
5. Rents will rise quickly, especially for short-term rentals.

The report can be accessed at https://www.redfin.com/news/ways-housing-market-will-change-after-pandemic/.  

Guild Mortgage Opens First Branches in Ohio

Guild Mortgage, San Diego, expanded in the Midwest with two offices in Ohio. The company opened branches in Columbus and Dayton, its first locations in the state.

The Columbus branch is located on the north side of the city at 8720 Orion Place, Suite 300, off I-71 and Ikea Way. The Dayton branch is at 1458 Yankee Park Place Suite A, off I-675 and Lyons Road.

FHFA House Price Index Up 1% in January; Up 12% from Year Ago

House prices rose nationwide in January, up 1 percent from the previous month, according to the latest Federal Housing Finance Agency House Price Index.  House prices rose 12 percent from January 2020 to January 2021. The previously reported 1.1 percent price change for December 2020 was revised upward to 1.2 percent.

For the nine census divisions, seasonally adjusted monthly house price changes from December 2020 to January 2021 ranged from -0.2 percent in the East South-Central division to +1.5 percent in the Mountain division.  The 12-month changes ranged from +10.2 percent in the West South-Central division to +14.8 percent in the Mountain division.

“While house prices experienced historic growth rates in 2020 and into the new year, the monthly gains appear to be moderating” said Lynn Fisher, FHFA Deputy Director of the Division of Research and Statistics. “House prices increased by 1.0 percent in January, which is relatively still high, but represents the smallest month-over-month gain since June 2020.”

Black Knight Updates Capture Platform

Black Knight Inc., Jacksonville, Fla., announced an update to its Capture lead analytics platform that helps lenders and servicers identify specific loans in their servicing portfolio or lead database that could benefit from refinancing based on equity positions and/or current first-lien rates.

Black Knight integrated Capture with its product and pricing engine, Optimal Blue PPE, to help lenders increase growth and retention and gain an edge in an increasingly competitive environment. Capture helps increase recapture rates for lenders and servicers by automating lead generation and calculating near-real-time pricing scenarios via the Optimal Blue PPE. Scenario calculations include borrower-specific attributes and the lender’s current pricing – including the most up-to-date market and margin structure.

Fitch: Inflation Plus Rising Rates Will Test Homebuilder Pricing Power

Fitch Ratings, Chicago, said the combination of higher building material costs and rising mortgage rates will test the pricing power of U.S. homebuilders.

“We expect demand to remain strong through 1H21, providing support for modest price increases on newly constructed homes, but trends could soften in 2H21, given increasing affordability issues and tougher [year over year] comps,” Fitch said. “Homeownership for entry-level and first-time homebuyers will increasingly become a challenge if higher costs are passed on to customers and the upward trend in mortgage rates continues.”

Fitch said gross margins for most Fitch-rated homebuilders are expected to be flat to slightly down in 2021, due in part to potentially less ability to pass on increased costs as mortgage rates rise. Modest margin deterioration is incorporated in ratings, as profitability rose and balance sheets strengthened over the past few years.

Redfin: Record 39% of Homes Sold Above List Price

Redfin, Seattle, said the median home-sale price increased 16% year over year to $331,590—a record high. However, year-over-year comparisons may more reflect the fact that this time last year, stay-at-home-orders halted both home-buying and selling activity. They don’t necessarily reflect how the housing market has changed over the past year.

For the four-week period ending March 21, Redfin said asking prices of newly listed homes were flat from the previous 4-week period at $349,973, and up 11% from the same time a year ago. Pending home sales were up 28% year over year; new listings of homes for sale were down 12% from a year earlier. Active listings (the number of homes listed for sale at any point during the period) fell 42% from 2020 to a record low. This is the largest decrease on record in this data, which goes back through 2016.

“It’s concerning how much home prices have risen during the pandemic,” said Redfin Chief Economist Daryl Fairweather. “When the pandemic is over, purchasing a home is going to cost much more than ever before, putting homeownership much further out of reach for many Americans. That means a future in which most Americans will not have the opportunity to build wealth through home equity, which will worsen inequality in our society.”