The Lede

MarketWatch, May 4, 2017--Andrea RiquierWhat Kayak.com does for travel booking, online mortgage broker Morty aims to do for the mortgage process.

Washington Post, May 4, 2017--Kathy OrtonMortgage rates held steady this week as mixed economic news kept them in check. Freddie Mac reported the 30-year fixed-rate average slipped to 4.02 percent with an average 0.5 point.

National Mortgage Professional, May 4, 2017--Phil HallOriginations of commercial and multifamily mortgages were up by nine percent on a year-over-year basis during the first quarter, according to new data from the Mortgage Bankers Association's However, the first quarter's origination levels were 27 percent lower than the fourth quarter.

National Real Estate Investor, May 4, 2017--Diana BellCongress extended the EB-5 investor visa program through September 30, but after two years of re-enacting the program as-is, there are now genuine efforts to reform it including minimum investment amounts, stricter oversight and reclassification of targeted employment areas.

HousingWire, May 4, 2017--Kelsey RamirezThe company said the increase in revenues was predominantly the result of a lower negative change in the fair value of the company's mortgage servicing rights for the first quarter, compared to the first quarter of 2016, partially offset by a decrease in gains on mortgage loans held for sale.

The Hill, May 4, 2017--Sylvan LaneThe House Financial Services Committee approved a bill Thursday to repeal and roll back significant pieces of the Dodd-Frank Act. The panel voted to send Chairman Jeb Hensarling's (R-Texas) Financial CHOICE Act to the House floor, 34-26, along party lines.

Wall Street Journal, May 4, 2017--Natalie Andrews (subscription)The Senate passed a $1.1 trillion bill to fund the government through Sept. 30, sending on Thursday the bill to the president's desk and taking a major step to avoid a partial government shutdown this weekend.

National Mortgage News, May 4, 2017--Brad Finkelstein (subscription)Mortgage credit availability declined in April as lenders cut back on the number of conforming products they offered, the Mortgage Banker Association reported.

National Mortgage News, May 4, 2017--Bonnie Sinnock (subscription)Many loan officers don't have an online presence, and a lot of those who do have neglected to correct errors and inaccuracies in key information, technology vendor Yext said.

Bloomberg, May 4, 2017--Sho ChandraU.S. worker productivity declined in the first quarter by the most in a year as growth in the world's largest economy weakened, a Labor Department report showed Thursday.

Mortgage Daily, May 4, 2017As quarterly home lending activity slowed late last year, the risk that the newly made loans would default moved higher, said Vantage Score LLC.

Mortgage Daily, May 4, 2017Commercial real estate loan originations tumbled from the final-three months of last year, when commercial mortgage production was estimated at $153 billion. But activity accelerated from an estimated $102 billion in CRE loan closings during the first-three months of last year, the Mortgage Bankers Association reported.

Wall Street Journal, May 5, 2017--Yuka Hayashi (subscription)Companies targeted by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau are more frequently choosing to fight enforcement actions rather than settle, as Republican control of the White House has put the agency's future in doubt.

National Mortgage News, May 4,2017--Bonnie Sinnock (subscription)Real estate finance advisory services and technology provider Situs has purchased The Collingwood Group, a Washington advisory group staffed largely by former government mortgage agency officials.

HousingWire, May 4, 2017--Brena SwansonThe official request asks the public to comment on the CFPB's plan, to suggest sources of data and generally to provide other information that would help with the assessment.

HousingWire, May 4, 2017--Kelsey RamirezZillow Group reported an increase in earnings in the first quarter, surpassing its own expectations and seeing a record high unique users on its site in March.

MBA Education and the Appraisal Institute present the second in a four-part webinar series on Appraisals on Monday, May 8.

In today's issue of MBA Insights: Mandating the Uniform Collateral Delivery Portal and the Uniform Appraisal Dataset has had a significant impact to the mortgage industry. Chuck Rumfola of Veros Real Estate Solutions takes a look back at the past five years and looks ahead to what's next.