Why Blacks and Hispanics Have Such Expensive Mortgages

The Atlantic, Feb. 25, 2016–White, Gillian B.
Today, home loans are consistently more expensive for black and Hispanic buyers than they are for white buyers. Why? Because banks and other lenders direct these groups toward high-risk, high-priced products.

U.S. Durable Goods Orders Jump Amid Strength in Business Spending

Wall Street Journal, Feb. 25, 2016–Sussman, Anna Louie
Orders for long-lasting manufactured goods posted their largest monthly gain since last spring, a sign the battered manufacturing industry could be stabilizing after one of its worst years since the recession ended.

Housing Data Suffers From Deja Vu

National Mortgage Professional, Feb. 25, 2016–Hall, Phil
From the haven’t-we-heard-this-song-too-many-times department: fixed mortgage rates declined again and California topped the hottest housing market list again.

Servicers Seek Greater Automation to Overhaul Onboarding

National Mortgage News, Feb. 25, 2016–Finkelstein, Brad
Amid growing scrutiny of how the hand-off of mortgages is managed after loan closings and bulk sales, servicers are working to automate the entire process to create a consistent and accurate onboarding experience for borrowers.

PHH’s 4Q Loss Widens on Higher Costs

National Mortgage News, Feb. 25, 2016–Peters, Andy
PHH Corp., Mount Laurel, N.J., reported a bigger loss in the fourth quarter, on costs to restructure its business and a loss on sales of mortgage servicing rights.

Nationstar 4Q Earnings Boosted by Servicing, Originations Growth

HousingWire, Feb. 25, 2016–Swanson, Brena
Nationstar Mortgage Holdings’ fourth quarter adjusted earnings were $34 million, or 32 cents per share, compared to $32 million, or $0.30 per share, for the third quarter. The increase was driven primarily by sequential improvement in servicing profitability and strong originations earnings.

Fannie Mae Names Winner of Second Community Impact Pool of NPLs

HousingWire, Feb. 25, 2016–Swanson, Brena
Fannie Mae announced it named New Jersey Community Capital, a non-profit Community Development Financial Institution, as the winning bidder on the company’s second Community Impact Pool of non-performing loans.

Homebuyers in Pricey Markets Are Now Scared to Dream

Bloomberg, Feb. 25, 2016–Clark, Patrick
Rising home prices in hot housing markets are robbing buyers of a favorite pleasure: looking at pictures of homes they can’t afford.

Jobless Claims Climb 10,000 to 272,000

MarketWatch, Feb. 25, 2016–Bartash, Jeffry
The number of Americans who applied for unemployment benefits last week rose by 10,000 to 272,000, but remained nearly a postrecession low.

What Homeowners Tell Us About the Super Tuesday Vote

CNBC, Feb. 25, 2016–Olick, Diana
Talk of the housing market, housing affordability and credit availability has been conspicuously absent from the political conversation in this election cycle. Voters, however, tend to vote with their pocketbooks, and their homes take up an awful lot of space in those cluttered bags.