Wall Street Journal, Jan. 21, 2021–Nicole Friedman (subscription)Americans are holding on to their homes longer, and it is costing would-be home buyers.https://www.wsj.com/articles/housing-market-stays-tight-as-homeowners-stay-put-11611226802
Category: Top National News
Don’t Let COVID Crisis Mask Affordable Housing Opportunity
HousingWire, Jan. 20, 2021–John BeachamAs the U.S. rushes to inoculate the current global health crisis, the real estate and mortgage finance industries are facing their second wave of significant industry …
Lower Refinance Activity Drives Down Mortgage Application Levels
MReport, Jan. 20, 2021–Phil HallA slowdown in refinancing brought about a slight decline in mortgage applications for the week ending January 15, according to the latest Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) …
FHFA Ponders Climate Risk for Fannie and Freddie
HousingWire, Jan. 20, 2021–Alex RohaThe Federal Housing Finance Agency announced it is requesting input on the current and future risk of natural disasters and climate change on Fannie Mae and …
Trump Commutes Sentence Of Former Mortgage Exec Michael Ashley
National Mortgage Professional, Jan. 20, 2021–Navi PersaudAlong the long list of pardons and commutations from former President Donald Trump was Michael Ashley, a former mortgage executive who pleaded guilty to …
Morgan Stanley Profit Shoots Higher, Fueled by Wall Street
Wall Street Journal, Jan. 20, 2021–Peter Rudegeair (subscription)Morgan Stanley said fourth-quarter profit rose 51% from a year earlier, another big U.S. bank to emerge from a turbulent year in better …
2021 Will Be Another Good Year for Home Sellers; Not So Much, Though, for Buyers
Washington Post, Jan. 20, 2021–Ilyce Glink, Samuel J. TamkinAccording to Freddie Mac, roughly 8 percent of homeowners opted into mortgage forbearance in May. Today, 5.46 percent of homeowners are still …
Weekly Mortgage Refinance Demand Drops 5% after Rates Hit Highest Level Since November
CNBC, Jan. 20, 2021–Diana OlickNow, several weeks of rising rates are dousing what was incredibly high demand for refinancing. That pulled total weekly mortgage application volume down 1.9% last week, …
Commercial Real Estate Debt Sustained by Central Bank Bond Buying
Wall Street Journal, Jan. 20, 2021–Anna Hirtenstein (subscription)Europe’s downtown office buildings are empty, and malls and main streets are deserted, yet the biggest landlords are staying afloat during the COVID-19 …
2021 Will be Another Good Year for Home Sellers–Not So Much, Though, For Buyers
Washington Post, Jan. 20, 2021–Ilyce Glink, Samuel TamkinIt’s safe to say that 2020 will go down in history as a year like no other. Even, or perhaps especially, in real …