Scaling from Freelancer to Business Owner

First Federal Bank stretched its retail mortgage operations into Louisiana and Mississippi, following its expansion into the Midwest and Arizona in 2023. View the full article

The government-sponsored enterprise removed a limit on adjustable-rate mortgages, and added flexibilities for repair, manufactured home and ADU financing. View the full article

Along with the company's rebranding to Lendware, a new CEO also takes the helm following allegations of financial mismanagement among some former leaders. View the full article

Stenger joins the Chicago-based lender after more than a decade at Movement Mortgage and will oversee its retail platform, including new tech enhancements. View the full article

Housing starts in the US fell in October to the lowest level since the onset of the pandemic as data delayed by last fall's government shutdown showed builders continued to cut back amid still-high prices and mortgage rates. View the full article

A coalition of mortgagees said the zombie seconds law negatively impacts 1.2 million junior liens statewide, despite just over 500 potential "zombie" loans. View the full article

Rate-and-term transactions leaped by 154% from August to September, while cash-outs and purchase loans also increased, according to Optimal Blue. View the full article

The accusations, relating to the lender's marketing programs, including trips for brokers as things of value, stem from a larger racketeering complaint. View the full article

While the program is still going strong in spite of the shutdown, many misconceptions about its rules, even in normal times, are holding back use. View the full article

Solve stages an acquisition, Intercontinental Exchange partners on new indices, Optimal Blue adds updates and Incenter offers a CRA loan trading platform. View the full article

Observers believe the government shutdown and lack of data is keeping mortgage rates in the same narrow range, as investors have issues reading the tea leaves. View the full article

The first government shutdown since 2019 will slow flood insurance originations and new Small Business Administration loans, though self-funded banking regulators will continue operating as usual. View the full article

Components of the index all rose, including the highest reading for sales expectations in the next six months since the start of the year. View the full article

Advances from the Federal Home Loan Banks dipped in the third quarter, but experts do not necessarily see the dip as a sign of ample liquidity in the economy. View the full article

The Pittsburgh-based bank's solid third quarter comes weeks after it announced it plans to acquire a Colorado bank for $4.1 billion. View the full article

Nearly 85,000 sellers removed their properties in September, the highest number for that month in eight years, according to Redfin. View the full article

Confidence among US homebuilders edged up in December as builders continued to deploy sales incentives to motivate buyers. View the full article

Treasuries fell after the US government signaled that larger auction sizes are on the horizon, while signs of economic resilience hurt the odds a Federal Reserve interest-rate cut in December. View the full article

The massive wholesale lender's new website stands opposite rival United Wholesale Mortgage's own originator portal which it launched in 2018. View the full article

The lender is seeking to dismiss the lawsuit, calling the purported scheme to also deprive its loan officers of full compensation implausible. View the full article

Defendants argued the vendor doesn't operate a pricing algorithm, and said some of the implicated home loan players never used the software. View the full article

Company leaders said current strategy sets it up to profit and compete against its rivals as the mortgage market improves in the coming months. View the full article

Saul Van Beurden, Wells Fargo's consumer banking CEO and former head of technology, will lead the way on harnessing artificial intelligence. View the full article

Luxury home prices rose 5.5% year over year in October to a median $1.28 million, far outgaining the 1.8% increase of nonluxury homes. View the full article