Scaling from Freelancer to Business Owner

More government-backed loans shifted out of forbearance, while the share of portfolio and private-label securities loans remained flat from December. View the full article

With the increase in investor-owned properties, the risk of undisclosed real estate fraud, including occupancy misrepresentation, rose 9% in the third quarter. View the full article

Growth in multifamily and investment property mortgage originations, the highest risk segments, drove the 6% rise in the National Fraud Index, Cotality said. View the full article

Industry comments are favorable, but with statements like "no bill is perfect" and "bold action is needed," groups want changes before it goes to the president. View the full article

Lenders and investors say the new rules will increase the cost of financing and limit homeowners' access to equity by curbing the enforceability of contracts. View the full article

Even with 4,000 public sector cuts, total employment numbers were surprisingly high, which raises questions about whether financing costs will keep falling. View the full article

Perspective homebuyers with work visas, asylum seekers and DACA recipients seeking the government-backed mortgage will be impacted by this sweeping change. View the full article

Selected companies will have the opportunity to demo their compliance-related solutions at a February 2026 tech sprint following a December kickoff event. View the full article

Excess capacity remains in the mortgage origination cycle, and lenders need to cut costs and end the boom-and-bust hiring, Boston Consulting Group said. View the full article

The private mortgage insurers reported just 5% less business versus the third quarter and 33% more new insurance written over the fourth quarter 2023. View the full article

While all six companies were profitable in the third quarter, most had earnings which were down from the prior periods, with MGIC setting a milestone. View the full article

Industry payrolls wavered in a tepid buying season in which total employment has been better than expected given government cuts. View the full article

Large mortgage companies are targeting mergers and acquisitions as well as home equity lending in their 2025 business plans, Boston Consulting Group said. View the full article

After two consecutive quarters of profits, independent mortgage bankers lost money in the most recent period, for the ninth time in the last three years. View the full article

Government-backed lending drove an increase in purchase mortgages for a second straight week, even as interest rates failed to drive refinance activity. View the full article

Mortgage loan officer licensing saw its first rise since 2022 as Fannie Mae projects $2.4T in 2026 volume. Experts eye a market reset amid improving affordability. View the full article

Recent merger activity also includes the purchase of an Alabama title company by technology firm Propy, as experts see ongoing consolidation through 2026. View the full article

Refinance activity was up 16% from the end of February while purchase applications rose mildly, on the strength of fading rates amid larger economic woes. View the full article

National Mortgage News takes a look back at some of the major or unique transactions which went on, or in some cases didn't happen, in the past 12 months. View the full article

Mortgage 1 Inc., founded in 1994, says customers and regulators have mistakenly contacted it instead of Mortgage One Funding, which changed its name in 2021. View the full article

January's median payment also grew at its fastest pace since October as volatile interest rates hit homebuyers' wallets, the Mortgage Bankers Association said. View the full article

The recent decline in mortgage rates and rising incomes helped improve buyer affordability, but record home prices remain formidable obstacles. View the full article

Servicing profit offset origination losses for some companies, but more than 40% of companies were unprofitable, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. View the full article

The good news in the Consumer Price Index report has not carried over to the 10-year Treasury yield and thus mortgage rates, Freddie Mac found. View the full article