Category: Top National News

Orange County Register (Calif.), Jan. 3, 2019–Jeff LazersonLet’s take a peek at the changing of the guard – that being the leadership at the Federal Housing Finance Agency or FHFA (Fannie Mae’s and Freddie Mac’s conservator and regulator), the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (your mortgage police), Fannie and Freddie.

National Mortgage News, Jan. 3, 2019–Kate Berry (subscription)Kathy Kraninger, the director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, said in an email to staff that the bureau will “vigorously enforce the law,” but also must weigh the “costs and benefits to consumers” of enforcement activities and rulemakings.

HousingWire, Jan. 3, 2019–Jessica GuerinWhile some market analysts predict an uptick in 2019 home equity lending, Bank of America’s David Doyle thinks otherwise.

HousingWire, Jan. 3, 2019–Jacob GaffneyEarly on into 2019, the government remains partially shutdown, and request-for-information emails to some federal housing authorities are getting bounced back, so it’s an inauspicious start.

Dallas News, Jan. 4, 2019–Paul O’DonnellMr. Cooper Group Inc. is continuing to expand its mortgage servicing business with Thursday’s purchase of IBM’s Seterus platform.

Wall Street Journal, Jan. 4, 2019–Ben Eisen (subscription)More than 26% of mortgage borrowers who used Federal Housing Administration-insured loans got assistance from a relative to make the down payment in the 12 months through September, up from about 22% in 2011, according to data released late last year as part of the agency’s annual report.

National Mortgage News, Jan. 2, 2019–Paul Centopani (free article)With its bolstered fundraising cache, the Mortgage Bankers Association Political Action Committee should hold an increased influence over the industry’s policy and regulation issues in the coming year.

Commercial Property Executive, Jan. 2, 2019–Sanyu KyeyuneIn 2017, $530 billion in commercial and multifamily mortgage loans closed, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association and the party continued into 2018. During the second quarter of 2018, originations were up 4 percent year-over-year and 32 percent over the first quarter, according to the MBA’s Quarterly survey of Commercial & Multifamily Originations Index.

The Mortgage Reports, Jan. 2, 2018–Peter MillerThere has never been a better time for the self-employed to obtain real estate financing. That’s not just an idle observation. There are several reasons to support such thinking.

Wall Street Journal, Jan. 2, 2019–Daniel Kruger (subscription)Investors are betting that U.S. interest rates will end 2019 no higher than where they started, a sign of diminished confidence in the economy.