The Lede

Black Knight, Jacksonville, Fla., released its January First Look Mortgage Monitor, reporting loan prepayments fell to an 18-year low as seasonal home sales reductions outweighed a rise in refinance incentives.

A study from MetaSource, Salt Lake City, said closing disclosures and other requirements imposed by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's late 2015 enhanced disclosure rules continue to pose quality control challenges.

Commercial property market supply and demand fundamentals remained relatively stable in third-quarter 2018, said Moody's Investors Service, New York.

TransUnion, Chicago, said personal loan balances increased by $21 billion in the past year to close 2018 at a record high $138 billion, with much of this growth driven by online loans originated by fintechs.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency reported Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac completed 245,620 refinances in the fourth quarter, a slight decrease from 253,135 in the third quarter.

The Mortgage Bankers Association's annual Commercial/Multifamily Servicing & Technology Conference takes place May 14-17 at the J.W. Marriott L.A. Live in Los Angeles.

Miami Herald, Feb. 25, 2019--Kenneth R. HarneySo here's the good news: The national delinquency rate on home loans hit the lowest level it's been in 18 years as of the final quarter of 2018, according to data compiled by the Mortgage Bankers Association.

National Mortgage News, Feb. 25, 2019--Hannah Lang (subscription)The House Financial Services Committee will hold eight hearings in March to examine issues ranging from oversight of Wells Fargo to the allocation of disaster recovery funds, Chairwoman Maxine Waters, D-Calif., announced Monday.

MarketWatch, Feb. 25, 2019--Keith JurowRemember all those sub-prime mortgages that blew up in 2007 and popped the housing bubble? The truth is these mortgages are still dangerous and could soon undermine the housing recovery.

DS News, Feb. 21, 2019--Donna JosephOn Wednesday, the Legal League 100 held a webinar that explored the potential outcomes of the Dennis Obduskey vs. McCarthy & Holthus Supreme Court case and the impact of these outcomes on both the mortgage industry and the legal professionals supporting it. (MBA mention)

American Banker, Feb. 21, 2019--Neil Haggerty (subscription)The Senate Banking Committee will vote Tuesday on Mark Calabria's nomination to succeed Mel Watt as director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency.

Buffalo Business First, Feb. 21, 2019--Alissa KlineAccording to a regulatory filing, the Buffalo-based lender agreed to pay $146 million for the right to service a residential mortgage loan portfolio with an outstanding balance of $13.3 billion.

Orange County Register, Feb. 21, 2019--Jeff LazersonSelf-employed borrowers now can qualify more easily for second fixed-rate loans.

American Banker, Feb. 20, 2019--Kate Berry (subscription)The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau appears to have shifted away from requiring financial institutions to refund customers in response to enforcement actions.

Wall Street Journal, Feb. 20, 2019--Nick Timiraos (subscription)Federal Reserve officials agreed at their meeting last month to announce soon a plan to stop shrinking their $4 trillion portfolio of bonds and other assets later this year, according to minutes of the meeting released Wednesday.

HousingWire, Feb. 20, 2019--Jessica GuerinHome equity levels are climbing while mortgage interest rates are falling, and this has some experts predicting an inevitable boom in cash-out refinances.

Urban Institute, Feb. 19, 2019; Corianne Payton Scally, Camille H. Anoli, Patrick SpausterThe NFMC program was designed and implemented by NeighborWorks America, a Congressionally chartered nonprofit organization. Based on our analysis of the NFMC program and its implementation, we identified four lessons that national policymakers can use as guide posts when responding to the next national crisis.

Bloomberg, Feb. 19, 2019--Christopher MaloneyMortgage loan servicers will be thrust into the spotlight as the success of the so-called Uniform mortgage-backed securities set to launch on June 3 is highly dependent on the continued convergence of prepayment speeds seen in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac securities.

Reverse Mortgage Daily, Feb. 19, 2019--Martin OlsenAs more reverse mortgage companies continue to expand their operations into the forward space in response to business changes and new realities, a shift appears to be taking place in what was once seen as conventional wisdom: the separation of forward and reverse mortgage business practices, in order for originators to remain specialized in one of the fields so that more dedicated service could be provided one way or the other.

American Banker, Feb. 19, 2019--Victoria Finkle (free article)It's understandable and even expected that an administration wouldn't be entirely forthcoming while it's developing a policy for overhauling something as large as the mortgage finance market, given the potential impact to so many facets of the economy.But that doesn't explain away the competing narratives of the last few weeks--narratives that actually seem to contradict each other.