HousingWire, August 29, 2023–Bill ConroyConcern is mounting among housing-industry experts that loan-repurchase rates in upcoming quarters are likely to continue to trend upward for independent mortgage banks (IMBs), well above …
Category: Top National News
Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac Fixed Rates Hit 8% for Qualified Borrowers
Orange County Register, August 30, 2023–Jeff LazersonCirca 2000 was the last time I handed over a Fannie Mae 30-year fixed-rate mortgage at a lofty 8% interest rate to a homebuyer. …
New Mortgage Rule Could Harm Efforts to Close Racial Homeownership Gap
HousingWire, Aug. 31, 2023–Chris ClowA Federal Reserve plan to make low-downpayment loans more expensive for banks could negatively impact the Biden administration’s efforts to combat housing inequality, experts told Politico.https://www.housingwire.com/articles/new-mortgage-rule-could-harm-efforts-to-close-racial-homeownership-gap/
Rates Are Up. We’re Just Starting to Feel the Heat.
The Wall Street Journal, Sept. 1, 2023-Greg Ip, Joe Pinsker, Will Parker, Walden Siew, Jennifer Williams-Alvarez, Veronica Dagher and Telis Demos (subscription)In the decade before the Covid-19 pandemic, governments, businesses …
EV Boom Remakes Rural Towns in the American South
The Wall Street Journal, Aug. 31, 2023-Nora Eckert (subscription)The U.S. auto industry is accelerating its move south as car companies pour billions of dollars into new factories in Georgia, Kentucky …
Why Housing Reform Worked in Montana
Bloomberg News, Aug. 31, 2023-Kriston Capps (subscription)Sparsely populated Montana, where cows outnumber people two to one, might not seem like a model stage for a national debate about urbanism. But …
Mortgage Rates Drift to 7.18%
The Wall Street Journal, Aug. 31, 2023-Gina Heeb (subscription)Mortgage rates edged down from a 22-year high, but remained above 7%.https://www.wsj.com/livecoverage/stock-market-today-dow-jones-08-31-2023/card/mortgage-rates-drift-to-7-18–gpsMHLMi4SGL61vyDwVy
CIBC to Focus Less on U.S. Office Real Estate After Profit Miss
Reuters, Aug. 31, 2023-Nivedita BaluCanadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC) (CM.TO) said on Thursday it would reduce its focus on U.S. commercial real estate due to weakness in that business, …
Chase Becomes Top Jumbo Servicer in Second Quarter
Inside Mortgage Finance, Aug. 31, 2023–James Dohnert (subscription)The number of jumbo mortgages being handled by the top 30 servicers increased in the second quarter of 2023, according to a new …
Office Refinancings Remain a Tough Sell
CommercialSearch, Aug. 30, 2023–Fotios TsarouhisIn the office market, obtaining backing for new office builds and lining up acquisition financing for M&A deals will prove tough in this environment. But refinancing …