The Lede

Reuters, Feb. 15, 2019U.S. homeowners who fell behind on their mortgage payments dropped to the lowest levels in 18 years in the final quarter of 2018, the Mortgage Bankers Association said on Friday.

Nasdaq, Feb. 15, 2019--Sweta KillaAccording to the Mortgage Bankers Association Builder Application Survey, mortgage applications for new home purchases remained unchanged in January from the year-ago month and increased 43% from December. After two lackluster months, new home sales surged almost 30% last month to the fastest pace since the survey began in 2013.

Wall Street Journal, Feb. 15, 2019--Valerie Bauerlein, Kate King, Cameron McWhirter (subscription)The collapse of Amazon.com Inc.'s plan to build a second headquarters in New York City has the potential to damp some states' willingness to offer tax breaks. Spurred by Amazon's second-headquarters selection process, politicians and groups long opposed to incentive packages have launched legislative efforts to prohibit them in some states.

HousingWire, Feb. 15, 2019--Ben LaneAfter struggling to keep up with the mortgage business' new reality of lower refinance originations due to higher mortgage interest rates, HomeStreet Bank announced Friday that it is plotting a mass exodus from the mortgage business.

National Mortgage News, Feb. 15, 2019--Allison Bisbey (subscripition)The state's tougher oversight has stripped Property Assessed Clean Energy of its go-to project financing status among contractors. That shift may result in adverse selection.

Washington Post, Feb. 15, 2019--Renae MerleFormer congressman Mel Watt misused his position as director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency by attempting to "coerce or induce" a relationship with a female employee seeking a promotion, according to a previously unreleased inspector general's report. Watt has denied the allegations.

Mortgage Media, Feb. 15, 2019--S.A. IbrahimAre we going to see more deals, particularly when private equity companies are flush with cash? As with any such questions, it is fun to speculate on what comes next.

Los Angeles Times, Feb. 17, 2019--Andrew KhouriAs stories piled up of homeowners beig smooth-talked into taking home improvement loans they couldn't afford, defenders of the PACE program cited its safety features. But some contractors apparently dance around those rules, as shown by the recent collapse of two firms.

The Mortgage Leader, Feb. 18, 2019Arch Capital Group Ltd. reported net income of $126.1 million, or $0.31 per share, a 5.9% annualized return on average equity, compared to $203.5 million, or $0.49 per share, for the 2017 fourth quarter.

UExpress, Feb. 15, 2019--Lew SichelmanTo protect borrowers with VA-guaranteed mortgages against churning by less-than-scrupulous lenders, the Department of Veterans Affairs has taken steps to make it more difficult to refinance loans that are all but brand new.