Category: Top National News

Reuters, Apr. 28, 2016–Mutikani, Lucia
Americans filing for unemployment benefits bounced back from a 42-1/2-year low last week, but the underlying trend remained consistent with tightening labor market conditions.

HousingWire, Apr. 28, 2016–Lane, Ben
Early Thursday morning, Joseph Smith, the monitor of the National Mortgage Settlement, announced that Ocwen Financial was not in compliance with one of the performance metrics of the National Mortgage Settlement and prohibited the nonbank from taking foreclosure actions on more than 17,000 loans. In response, Ocwen noted the holds are not “frozen foreclosures,” but that “Many of these loans have never been referred to foreclosure and never will be.

Block News Alliance, Apr. 29, 2016–Grant, Tim
Losing a home to foreclosure has left such a bad taste with some former homeowners that they have lost much of their will and desire to go through the underwriting process to get approved for a new home loan–even though years may have gone by since the foreclosure episode.

Wall Street Journal, Apr. 28, 2016–Francis, Theo; Linebaugh, Kate
U.S. corporate profits, weighed down by the energy slump and slowing global growth, are set to decline for the third straight quarter in the longest slide in earnings since the financial crisis.

National Mortgage News, Apr. 27, 2016–Collins, Brian
Large lenders are pushing the Federal Housing Administration to revamp its loan defect taxonomy to provide more certainty about potential errors and mistakes that could lead to enforcement actions. “We are trying to get to a place where you don’t have minor errors creating treble damages risk under false claims,” said Pete Mills, a senior vice president at the Mortgage Bankers Association.

Commercial Observer, Apr. 27, 2016–Knakal, Robert
The dynamics in the broader New York City investment sales market for the last six months have looked like the quintessential beginning of a market correction. What has been surprising this time around is the relative strength of the office sector.

CNBC, Apr. 27, 2016–Olick, Diana
Total volume decreased 4.1 percent last week on a seasonally adjusted basis from the previous week, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. Rates moved higher for the second week in a row.

MarketWatch, Apr. 27, 2016–Hoak, Amy
Thin housing inventory has contributed to a spike in remodeling as buyers pour money into their current homes instead of moving–often using home equity to do it.

DS News, Apr. 27, 2016–West, Xhevrije
There is a demographic shift happening within the mortgage profession. In an industry that is so male and white-focused, women and minorities are often passed over for well-deserved positions and promotions, but this idea is being reshaped and redefined right before our eyes.

National Mortgage Professional, Apr. 27, 2016–Hall, Phil
Zillow determined that Indianapolis home buyers can expect to spend 11 percent of their income on a monthly mortgage payment, four percentage points below the national average. But those savings do not carry over for renters, who can expect to spend 26 percent of their income on monthly rent.