The Week Ahead—July 12, 2021
Good morning! Even though it’s summer, things stay busy in Washington—and with the Mortgage Bankers Association.
The MBA weekly Forbearance & Call Volume Survey comes out this afternoon at 4:00 p.m. ET. The survey has shown drops in loans in forbearance for 18 consecutive weeks and has showed loans in forbearance at under 4 percent for the past three weeks. MBA Chief Economist Mike Fratantoni will provide analysis and commentary in Tuesday’s MBA NewsLink.
MBA also releases its Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey this Wednesday, July 14, with analysis and commentary from MBA Associate Vice President of Economic and Industry Forecasting Joel Kan. And on Thursday, July 15, MBA releases its monthly Mortgage Credit Availability Index; Kan will provide commentary and analysis on this report as well.
Other economic reports of interest this week: Consumer Price Index (Tuesday); Empire State Manufacturing Survey (Thursday); Initial Claims (Thursday); Imports/Exports (Thursday); Philadelphia Fed Manufacturing Survey (Thursday); Industrial Production/Capacity Utilization (Thursday); Advance Retail Sales (Friday); Business Inventories (Friday); and the University of Michigan Consumer Survey (preliminary) (Friday).
Congress is back in town this week, for the start of a couple of intense weeks before the traditional August recess. The Biden Administration would love to have its infrastructure bill—or a compromise bill being pushed by House and Senate centrists—passed and signed before the break. But negotiations are expected to prolong the process.
This week also marks the start of committee consideration of various Administration budget proposals for fiscal year 2022. Of interest to the real estate finance industry, the House Appropriations Committee kicks things off today (July 12) with its markup of Fiscal Year 2022 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development and Related Agencies Subcommittee Appropriations Bill—also known as T-HUD.
MBA strongly supports key elements of this bill and sent a letter last week to Committee leadership urging the bill’s support.
The markup session begins at 5:00 p.m. ET in 2118 Rayburn House Office Building. Should you be inclined to watch the hearing, click here.
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell makes the rounds on Capitol Hill this week. Powell testifies before the House Financial Services Committee this Wednesday, July 14 to deliver the Semiannual Monetary Policy Report to the Congress. The virtual hearing begins at noon ET and can be viewed online here.
The next day, Thursday, July 15, Powell appears in-person before the Senate Banking Committee to do it all over again. The hearing begins at 9:30 a.m. ET in Dirksen Senate Office Building 538 and can be accessed online here.
Also this week, the Senate Banking Committee meets to vote on the nomination of Damon Smith as HUD General Counsel. The Committee will also consider the nomination of Arun Venkataraman as Assistant Secretary of Commerce and Director General of the United States and Foreign Commercial Service.
The hearing begins at 10:00 a.m. ET in 538 Dirksen and can be accessed online here.
Back on the House side, the Financial Services Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations holds a virtual hearing on CDBG Disaster Recovery: States, Cities and Denials of Funding. The hearing begins at noon ET and can be accessed online here.
On Friday, July 16, the Financial Services Task Force on Artificial Intelligence holds a virtual hearing on I Am Who I Say I Am: Verifying Identity while Preserving Privacy in the Digital Age. The hearing begins at noon ET and can be accessed online here.
Registration for the MBA Annual Convention & Expo, taking place Oct. 17-20 at the San Diego Convention Center, is officially open. Keynote speakers include New York Times best-selling authors Malcolm Gladwell and Brad Meltzer; and Academy Award- and Presidential Medal of Freedom Award-winning actress Rita Moreno.
Gladwell, whose newest book, The Bomber Mafia: A Dream, a Temptation, and the Longest Night of the Second World War, was inspired by the four-part series about General Curtis LeMay on his podcast “Revisionist History.” In it, Gladwell weaves together the stories of a Dutch genius and his homemade computer, a band of brothers in central Alabama, a British psychopath and pyromaniacal chemists at Harvard to examine one of the greatest moral challenges in modern American history. Gladwell will discuss his book with MBA Chair-Elect Kristy Fercho on Tuesday, June 19.
Meltzer uses his trademark storytelling to emphasize the importance of knowing what really matters in your life. While saving the house where Superman was created, Meltzer started a quest to find out what his legacy might be. His funny, inspiring, and entertaining story will never let you look at your own life the same way again. Weaving together the historical stories of Abraham Lincoln, Amelia Earhart and even Superman, Meltzer helps you reevaluate what’s truly important: family, friends and those whole lives you touch by making an impact in your workplace. Meltzer will speak on Tuesday, June 19.
Moreno is among just a handful of entertainers who have completed the “EGOT:” winning an Emmy (twice), a Grammy, an Oscar (for West Side Story) and a Tony Award. Her countless credits span more than seven decades, beginning with her Broadway debut at age 13. She has starred on Broadway and London’s West End, appeared in more than 40 feature films and countless television shows. And like Gladwell, she is a New York Times best-selling author with her first book, Rita Moreno: A Memoir, published by Celebra Books. She received the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President George W. Bush and the National Medal of Arts by President Barack Obama. Moreno will keynote the mPower Luncheon on Tuesday, June 19.
The MBA Annual Convention & Expo is largest annual gathering of real estate finance professionals, this is the one event you need to gain access to the industry’s power players and innovators.
Be inspired and get informed by engaging speakers on the Main Stage; meet with hundreds of exhibitors in THE HUB and get hands-on access to the latest products and services; dive deep into Breakout Sessions to get the insight you need on all the facets of the business; connect with industry peers through unparalleled networking opportunities; Leave with actionable takeaways for future success.
For more information and to register for MBA ANNUAL 21, click here.
For information about other upcoming MBA conferences, click here.
For the most up-to-date information regarding legislative activity at the state and local level, visit the MBA State Legislative Database here.
For information about MBA Education events, visit http://www.mbaeducation.org.
For information about the National Association of Minority Mortgage Bankers of America (NAMMBA), visit https://www.nammba.org/.
