The Lede

CNBC, Mar. 28, 2018--Diana OlickApplications for mortgages jumped 4.8 percent last week from the previous week, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association's seasonally adjusted report. Volume remained unchanged from one year ago.

American Banker, Mar. 28, 2018--Penny Crosman (subscription)Quicken Loans' Rocket Mortgage has made waves because it promises to process a mortgage application in minutes and close the loan in under a month, but a new upstart, Lenda, is aiming to knock the firm, now the largest nonbank home lender in the country, off its perch.

New York Times, Mar. 28, 2018--Neil IrwinThe economics of home buying are getting interesting, thanks to higher mortgage rates, tax changes and a supply-demand imbalance.

Wall Street Journal, Mar. 28, 2018--Josh Barbanel (subscription)Sales of Manhattan apartments slowed during the first quarter to the slowest pace in five years, according to an analysis by The Wall Street Journal.

National Mortgage News, Mar. 28, 2018--Chelsey Emery, Bonnie McGeer, Dana Jackson (subscription)While the #MeToo movement has prompted important discussions about workplace equality, a SourceMedia study shows sexual harassment continues to be an issue in many industries.

HousingWire, Mar. 28, 2018--Ben LaneEquifax announced Wednesday that it is naming Mark Begor as its next CEO. Begor will take over at the company on April 16, replacing Paulino do Rego Barros, who took over as interim CEO when Richard Smith retired in the immediate aftermath of the company's disclosure of the breach.

New York Times, Mar. 28, 2018--Glenn ThrushThe Trump administration is attempting to scale back federal efforts to enforce fair housing laws, freezing enforcement actions against local governments and businesses, including Facebook, while sidelining officials who have aggressively pursued civil rights cases.

Mortgage Daily, Mar. 28, 2018Residential loan servicers will soon be able to apply for licenses in the Keystone State as required by legislation that became law late last year.

Mortgage Daily, Mar. 28, 2018Improvements to lending guidelines at Freddie Mac include expanded loan-to-value ratios and more flexible condominium requirements.

Financial Times, Mar. 29, 2018--Ben McLannahan, Joe Rennison (subscription)Home loans to people with scratches and dents in their credit histories dwindled to almost nothing in the aftermath of the crisis, as litigation-weary lenders retreated to patch up their balance sheets. But over the past couple of years a group of specialist firms has begun to bring the loans back, navigating a dense web of new rules drawn up to protect borrowers and investors.

National Mortgage News, Mar. 28, 2018--Brad Finkelstein (subscription)Mortgage banking is a cash-negative business and one of the few ways to make money for many companies is by selling whole loans along with the associated servicing rights to an aggregator, Stan Middleman, the president and CEO of Freedom Mortgage, said during a panel presentation at the Regional Conference of Mortgage Bankers Associations in Atlantic City, N.J.

National Mortgage News, Mar. 28, 2018--Brad Finkelstein (subscription)Lenders should not get so desperate chasing volume by originating lower credit non-qualified mortgage products that they are inviting the next regulatory crackdown, said David Stevens, the Mortgage Bankers Association's CEO.

HousingWire, Mar. 28, 2018--Ben LaneRadian is making another change in its services business by acquiring Entitle Direct Group, a title insurance and settlement services company that specializes in selling title insurance directly to consumers.

Reuters, Mar. 28, 2018--Lucia MutikaniGross domestic product expanded at a 2.9 percent annual rate in the final three months of 2017, instead of the previously reported 2.5 percent, the Commerce Department said in its third estimate for the quarter on Wednesday.

MBA Education presents its popular Introduction to Mortgage Banking Instructor-Guided Online Course on Tuesdays and Thursdays from Apr. 3-17.