The Week Ahead Oct. 4, 2021: Five Things to Watch
Good morning and Happy October—or, as they say in the classic rock world, Happy “Rocktober!” This month is always insanely busy for the Mortgage Bankers Association and the real estate finance industry, so let’s get started: here are five things to watch for this week:
First, the MBA Annual Convention & Expo is just two weeks away, taking place Oct. 17-20 at the San Diego Convention Center.
Keynote speakers include New York Times best-selling authors Malcolm Gladwell and Brad Meltzer; Teresa Bryce Bazemore, President & CEO of the Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco; Sandra Thompson, Acting Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency; Fannie Mae CEO Michael DeVito; Freddie Mac CEO Hugh Frater; MBA President & CEO Robert Broeksmit, CMB; outgoing MBA Chairman Susan Stewart; incoming MBA Chairman Kristy Fercho; MBA COO and mPower Founder Marcia Davies; MBA Chief Economist Mike Fratantoni; MBA Vice President of Industry Analysis Marina Walsh, CMB; and MBA Associate Vice President of Economic and Industry Forecasting Joel Kan.
Concert MBA will feature Grammy-nominated recording artists OneRepublic, to benefit the MBA Opens Doors Foundation.
The MBA Annual Convention & Expo is largest annual gathering of real estate finance professionals, this is the one event you need to gain access to the industry’s power players and innovators.
Be inspired and get informed by engaging speakers on the Main Stage; meet with hundreds of exhibitors in THE HUB and get hands-on access to the latest products and services; dive deep into Breakout Sessions to get the insight you need on all the facets of the business; connect with industry peers through unparalleled networking opportunities; Leave with actionable takeaways for future success.
For more information and to register for MBA ANNUAL 21, click here.
Second, Congress. Last week Congress and the Biden Administration narrowly avoided yet another potentially disastrous federal government shutdown by passing a Continuing Resolution that keeps the government funded until Dec. 3. That gives the Administration and leaders in Congress a little more breathing room—but December will be here before we know it (but you know that already—you saw your first Christmas commercials this past weekend).
More pressing for Congress is the continued work on the Administration’s massive $3.5 trillion infrastructure program; extension of the federal government’s debt ceiling; and voting rights legislation. Deadlines and ultimatums for votes have come and gone; House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., want to bring the measures to their respective floors—but only if they have a sure chance at passage—which, because of reluctance on the part of a couple of Democratic senators (Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., and Kyrsten Sinema, D-Ariz.), as well as progressive and moderate House Democrats. The drama is expected to continue throughout the fall.
The MBA Government Affairs team has created a helpful memo that highlights key impacts for both single-family and commercial/multifamily markets.
The backlog of Biden Administration nominees gets a nice push this week, with a number of housing industry nominees expected to get approved by the Senate Banking Committee this week.
On Tuesday, Oct. 5, the Banking Committee meets to consider nominations of Brian Eddie Nelson as Treasury Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Crimes; Elizabeth Rosenberg as Treasury Assistant Secretary for Terrorist Financing; Julia Gordon as HUD Assistant Secretary of Housing and Urban Development; David Uejio (until last week, acting Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau) as HUD Assistant Secretary of Housing and Urban Development; Solomon Greene as HUD Assistant Secretary of Housing and Urban Development; and several other Commerce/Treasury nominees.
The hearing begins at 9:45 a.m. ET in Dirksen Senate Office Building 538 and can be accessed online here.
On Thursday, Oct. 7, the Banking Committee considers more key Administration nominations, including Alanna McCargo as President of Ginnie Mae; James Arthur Jemison II as HUD Assistant Secretary of Housing and Urban Development; Mark Colon as HUD Assistant Secretary of Housing and Urban Development; and Matthew Axelrod as Assistant Secretary of Commerce.
The hearing begins at 10:00 a.m. ET in Dirksen 538 and can be accessed online here.
On Wednesday, Oct. 6, the Senate Commerce Committee holds a hearing on Enhancing Data Security, the second in a series examining the growing urgency to protect consumer privacy and safeguard data, as well as holding bad actors accountable for increasing privacy violations, data breaches, internet scams, ransomware assaults and other harmful data abuses.
The hearing begins at 10:00 a.m. ET in Russell Senate Office Building Room 253 and can be accessed online at www.commerce.senate.gov.
The House Financial Services Committee is quiet this week, On Tuesday, Oct. 5, the House Oversight and Reform Committee holds a hearing on Hurricane Ida and Beyond: Readiness, Recovery, and Resilience. The hearing begins at 11:00 a.m. ET in Rayburn House Office Building room 2154 and can be accessed online here.
Third, MBA kicks off another busy week of reports. The MBA weekly Forbearance & Call Volume Survey comes out this afternoon at 4:00 p.m. ET. MBA Chief Economist Mike Fratantoni will provide analysis and commentary in Tuesday’s MBA NewsLink.
On Wednesday, Oct. 6, MBA will release its Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey, with commentary and analysis from MBA Associate Vice President of Economic and Industry Forecasting Joel Kan.
And on Thursday, Oct. 7, MBA will release its monthly Mortgage Credit Availability Index (MCAI), with commentary and analysis by Kan.
Fourth, Economic Reports. This week’s housing and economic reports kick off Monday with Manufacturing, Shipments and Orders; Tuesday sees the CoreLogic Home Price Index and the Institute for Supply Management Non-Manufacturing Index; Wednesday has the ADP National Employment Report and JOLTS (Job Openings & Labor Turnover Survey); Thursday sees Initial Claims; and Friday brings the Employment report; MBA NewsLink will have commentary and analysis on that report from MBA Chief Economist Mike Fratantoni and other.
Fifth, MBA Conferences. mPowering You, MBA’s Summit for Women in Real Estate Finance, takes place Saturday, Oct. 16 at the San Diego Convention Center just ahead of the MBA Annual Convention & Expo (Oct. 17-20). mPower (MBA Promoting Opportunities for Women to Extend their Reach) is the largest networking organization for women in real estate finance. For more information and to register, click here.
The fall conference schedule concludes with the MBA Accounting & Financial Management Conference, taking place Nov. 10-12 in Nashville. For more information, click here.
For information about other upcoming MBA conferences, click here.
For the most up-to-date information regarding legislative activity at the state and local level, visit the MBA State Legislative Database here.
For information about MBA Education events, visit http://www.mbaeducation.org.
For information about the National Association of Minority Mortgage Bankers of America (NAMMBA), visit https://www.nammba.org/.
Enjoy the week!
