MBA Newslinks Archive

“We always looked at mortgages this way: our products are not that different from anyone else’s products. It’s not like some firm has air conditioning on 30-year loans and another doesn’t, and since the Mortgage Armageddon, there are even fewer products. So it’s not the product. Price is taken away, product differentiation is taken away, so Quicken Loans competes on the way we deliver that home loan to the customer.”
–Quicken Loans Founder and Chairman Dan Gilbert.

“We have become increasingly more optimistic about the home purchase market. Refinance activity will continue to decline as there are few remaining households that can benefit from an interest rate reduction and because interest rates will gradually begin to rise from historic lows in the coming years.”–MBA Chief Economist Mike Fratantoni.  

“We don’t see dramatic increases in interest rates. However, even a 25- or 50-basis point increase would be enough to cause consumers at the margin to drop out of the market to purchase a home, which will cause some softening overall. While we do see softening in the long-term, the overall market is still expected to appreciate.”  
–Eric Fox, vice president of statistical and economic modeling with Veros Real Estate Solutions, Santa Ana, Calif.

“We all want to provide a safe, reliable and affordable pathway for housing, but some of the actions being taken today are forcing lenders into a very restrictive and defensive lending posture. Whether we’re talking enforcement regimes or confusion in some of the rules, today’s credit restraints did not come out of thin air.”
–MBA President and CEO David Stevens.

“While there will be new reporting requirements for some market segments, we appreciate that the Bureau is making MISMO technology standards a core part of the new reporting. MBA wants to reiterate its concerns about data security and consumer privacy in light of all the additional detailed information on consumers that the government will be collecting and disclosing under the new HMDA guidelines. In the months to come, we look forward to working closely with the Bureau to ensure that consumers’ data are protected.”
–MBA President and CEO David Stevens, on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s final rule modifying the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act.

“While some market participants may argue there is ‘nothing new’ in the Bulletin, MBA views it as a strong warning to the industry to reconsider existing MSAs or any plans to establish new ones.”
–MBA Senior Vice President of Residential Policy & Member Engagement Pete Mills. 

“Application volume plummeted last week in the wake of implementation of new TILA-RESPA Integrated Disclosures, which caused lenders to significantly revamp their business processes, and as a result dramatically slowed the pace of activity.”
–MBA Chief Economist Mike Fratantoni. 

“Certainly the U.S. apartment market has well exceeded expectations, and barring a major slowdown in the broader economy, those trends should continue.”
–Jay Parsons, director of analytics and forecasts with MPF Research, Dallas.

“There were plenty of reasons for the office metrics to slump this quarter: financial market volatility, China’s economic slowdown, the rapid appreciation of the U.S. dollar and uncertainty regarding monetary policy along with the possibility of a government shutdown. [However,] the property markets are proving time and time again to be resilient in the face of all of these headwinds.”
–Kevin Thorpe, chief economist with Cushman & Wakefield, Los Angeles.

“We are deeply concerned about how marketing services agreements are undermining important consumer protections against kickbacks, Companies do not seem to be recognizing the extent of the risks posed by implementing and monitoring these agreements within the bounds of the law.”
–Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Richard Cordray, who said marketing services agreements carry legal and regulatory risk for lenders under the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act.