The Week Ahead, Mar. 14, 2022: The Worst-Kept Secret in Washington and 5 Other Things to Know

March 11, 2022 |By Mike Sorohan-msorohan@mba.org

Good morning and happy Monday! Here’s what’s happening in the real estate finance world this week:

First the Federal Reserve. The Federal Open Market Committee holds-its long-awaited policy meeting this week and everyone—even the Hermit of the Misty Mountain—expects the Fed to raise the federal funds rate by at least 25 basis points, with some analysts speculating that the FOMC could make it a 50 basis-point hike.

This would be the first increase in the federal funds rate since March 2020—the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, when the FOMC lowered the rate to 0-0.25 percent.

The FOMC meets on Tuesday, Mar. 15 and Wednesday, Mar. 16 and will issue its policy statement at 2:00 p.m. ET on Wednesday. Look for a special afternoon edition of MBA NewsLink on Wednesday to cover the announcement, with commentary and analysis from MBA Chief Economist Mike Fratantoni and others.

Second, the MBA Tech Solutions Conference & Expo. The biggest mortgage technology conference of the year is less than a month away, taking place Apr. 11-14 at the Bellagio in Las Vegas.

Take the pulse of the industry and where it’s headed so you can keep up. Take knowledge and solutions back home with you to keep your company in the game. Meet with experts from top companies in THE INNOVATION HUB to find the solutions you need to respond to change and drive your business forward. Get unrivaled access to thought leaders and a front-row seat to today’s top fintech and industry providers as they present 20+ live demos during the Tech Showcase.

For more information and to register, visit the Conference website.

Third, MBA Reports. The Mortgage Bankers Association releases two reports of interest this week: the MBA Weekly Applications Survey on Wednesday, Mar. 16; and the MBA monthly Builder Applications Survey this Thursday, Mar. 17. Both reports will feature commentary and analysis from MBA Associate Vice President of Economic and Industry Forecasting Joel Kan.

And on Thursday, MBA releases its monthly Mortgage Credit Availability Index, with commentary and analysis from Kan as well.

Fourth, Economic Reports. The third week of the month traditionally kicks off a two-week stretch of housing reports. In addition to the MBA Builder Applications Survey, we’ll see The National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (Wednesday); Housing Starts (Thursday) and Existing Home Sales (Friday).

Here are this week’s reports (those that MBA NewsLink will cover are in boldface):

Tuesday: Empire State Manufacturing Survey

Wednesday: MBA Weekly Applications Survey; Federal Open Market Committee Statement; Advance Retail Sales; Business Leaders Survey; Imports/Exports; Business Inventories; National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index

Thursday: Initial Claims; New Residential Construction; Philadelphia Fed Manufacturing Survey; Industrial Production/Capacity Utilization

Friday: Existing Home Sales

Fifth, Congress. The House and Senate are in session this week, having approved a $1.5 trillion spending package that keeps the federal government open through fiscal 2022. Meanwhile, both chambers continue to craft responses to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

The Senate Banking Committee holds a hearing on Thursday, Mar. 17 on Understanding the Role of Digital Assets in Illicit Finance. Jonathan Levin, Co-Founder and Chief Strategy Officer of Chainalysis Inc., is slated to testify.

The hearing begins at 10:00 a.m. ET in Dirksen Senate Office Building room 538 and can be accessed online here.

The House Financial Services Committee holds a markup hearing on Wednesday, Mar. 16. The Committee will consider the following pieces of legislation:

H.R. 2311, the Credit Union Governance Modernization Act of 2021
H.R. 2620, the Investor Choice Act of 2021
H.R. 5910, the Holding SPACs Accountable Act of 2021
H.R. 5911, the Fair Hiring in Banking Act
H.R. 5913, the Protecting Investors from Excessive SPACs Fees Act of 2021
H.R. 5914, the Empowering States to Protect Seniors from Bad Actors Act

The hearing begins at 10:00 a.m. ET in Rayburn House Office Building room 2128 and can be accessed online here.

For more information about the House and Senate, visit www.house.gov and www.senate.gov, respectively. For more information about upcoming hearings in the Senate Banking Committee, click https://www.banking.senate.gov/hearings. For more information about upcoming hearings in the House Financial Services Committee, click https://financialservices.house.gov/calendar/?EventTypeID=577&Congress=117.

Sixth, Upcoming MBA Conferences. Here is a list of upcoming MBA conferences: