The Lede

CNBC, Nov. 18, 2015--Olick, Diana Home loan borrowers seem undeterred by the highest interest rates in five months, or perhaps provoked by them. This is especially evident among homebuyers. Mortgage application volume increased 6.2 percent last week from a week earlier, according to a survey by the Mortgage Bankers Association.

New York Observer, Nov. 18, 2015--Elkies Schram, Lauren As the disparity between the haves and the have-nots widens, there is perhaps no better demonstration of that dynamic than in Manhattan's commercial real estate market. Within the past year, the priciest such sale reached $2.59 billion.

MarketWatch, Nov. 18, 2015--Hoak, Amy The ranks of real estate appraisers stand to shrink substantially over the next five years, which could mean longer waits, higher fees and even lower-quality appraisals as more appraisers cross state lines to value properties.

Mortgage Professional America, Nov. 18, 2015--Horne, Donald Though the new disclosures are widely regarded as improvements over the ones they replaced--the traditional good-faith estimates, truth in lending and HUD-1 settlement forms--there have been concerns for months that the reformed process would increase the typical time span between loan application and the final closing. Michael Fratantoni, chief economist for the Mortgage Bankers Association, says regulatory changes have pushed up origination costs.

Associated Press, Nov. 18, 2015 Wells Fargo is moving mortgage servicing operations from Charlotte to Fort Mill, South Carolina.

Fox Business, Nov. 18, 2015--Prial, Dunstan Recently appointed Dallas Federal Reserve President Rob Kaplan on Wednesday defended the central bank's cautious approach toward raising interest rates, but suggested it may be time to start lifting.

Wall Street Journal, Nov. 18, 2015--Hilsenrath, Jon Federal Reserve officials meeting last month anticipated it "could well be" time to raise short-term interest rates at a December policy meeting after keeping them pinned near zero for seven years.

National Mortgage News, Nov. 18, 2015--Witkowski, Rachel In one instance, a single complaint in the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's database was counted as 35 different ones while in another, a complaint against a payday lender was filed against an unrelated bank. Current and former officials say that's par for the course, leading to inflated complaint numbers and inaccurate data.

National Mortgage News, Nov. 18, 2015--Finkle, Victoria; Heltman, John The White House threatened to veto two bills--one that would mandate new cost-benefit requirements on the Federal Reserve and the other to allow loans held in portfolio to qualify as a "qualified mortgage."

HousingWire, Nov. 18, 2015--Swanson, Brena Although California's housing market softened in October as both statewide sales and median price contracted from the previous month, it is still on target to meet forecast projections.

The Villager (Colo.), Nov. 18, 2015--Sweeney, Bob Colorado State University Alumni Association shined its spotlight on Aurora resident Ewin Michael Rosser recently by presenting him with the Lifetime Career Achievement Award given to alumni who have excelled in their business and civic careers.

HousingWire, Nov. 18, 2015--Lane, Ben By a 255-174 vote, the House approved the "Portfolio Lending and Mortgage Access Act," which would broaden the definition of qualified mortgages - those that qualify for the safe harbor - to include all mortgages held on a lender's balance sheet. The legislataion faces a presidential veto.

New York Times, Nov. 18, 2015--Thomas Jr., Landon Robert F. Dall, an investment banker and a pioneer of the mortgage bond market on Wall Street, died on Sunday at Lenox Hill Hospital in Manhattan. He was 81.

The Mortgage Bankers Association's Independent Mortgage Bankers Conference takes place Dec. 2-4 at the Omni Nashville.

The Mortgage Bankers Association's Research and Economics Department announces a new Whole Loan Trading Workshop, taking place on Jan. 28 in Fort Worth, Texas.