The Lede

Mortgage Orb, Mar. 26, 2018--Patrick BarnardShrinking refinance volume and lackluster purchase volume caused the net profit per loan to fall to $237 in the fourth quarter, down from $929 in the third quarter, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

Urban Institute, Mar. 26, 2018--Edward Golding, Sarah Strochak, Laurie GoodmanData at the zip code level from the Urban Institute and Sloan Foundation's Administrative Data Research Facility found a "considerable gap" in homeownership rates between neighborhoods with low levels of limited English proficient residents and those with higher levels of LEP residents.

American Banker, Mar. 26, 2018--Michael E. Reyen (subscription)Elements of blockchain technology appear to be the next step in what has been an evolution from a wet ink, paper-based system to an online, paperless (or at least paper-light) system that has already been moving toward e-filing, electronic signatures and electronic access to scanned documents.

National Mortgage Professional, Mar. 26, 2018--Phil HallIn a poll of 2,700 households, 68 percent of homeowner respondents during the first quarter felt that now is a good time to buy a home, down from 72 percent in the fourth quarter.

National Mortgage News, Mar. 26, 2018--Bonnie Sinnock (subscription)A proposed regulatory change could jump-start more bank interest in mortgage servicing rights this year. The capital simplification proposal, which increases the percentage of Tier 1 capital that can be made up of MSRs to 25% from 10%, would reduce the pressure on banks to sell MSRs.

Bloomberg, Mar. 26, 2018--Jesse HamiltonWall Street should force banks to share the pain of regulatory penalties by docking executives' pay, a move that would help discourage bad behavior, Federal Reserve Bank of New York President William Dudley said Monday.

Reuters, Mar. 26, 2018--Andrew ChungThe U.S. Supreme Court on Monday handed a defeat to former American International Group Inc. CEO Maurice "Hank" Greenberg, refusing to hear an appeal he led arguing that the federal government illegally bailed out the insurer during the 2008 financial crisis at the expense of shareholders.

Mortgage Daily, Mar. 26, 2018A sharp weekly increase in prospective loans to finance a home purchase to the highest level in six months drove new mortgage business to the highest level in more than four months, according to the Mortgage Daily U.S. Mortgage Market Index.

Wall Street Journal, Mar. 27, 2018--Lalita Clozel (subscription)Jelena McWilliams, the top lawyer at Cincinnati-based Fifth Third Bancorp, is set to succeed Obama-appointee Martin Gruenberg as head of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. as early as April.

Wall Street Journal, Mar. 27, 2018--Maria Armental, Miriam Gottfried (subscription)Agreement would create one of the world's largest retail real-estate companies; Brookfield would pay $9.25 billion in cash plus stock.

HousingWire, Mar. 26, 2018--Kelsey RamirezAnalyzing U.S. Census Bureau data going back as far as 1974, a new study from RentCafé found that Millennials have been the hardest generation for those ages 22 to 30. And the future does not look bright for Generation Z.

Mortgage Daily, Mar. 26, 2018HUD reached a settlement with reverse mortgage lender MetLife Home Loans LLC, which allowed someone to sign loan documents even though he didn't have the authority to do so.