Scaling from Freelancer to Business Owner

An estimated 565,000 first-lien refinances closed in the fourth quarter, up 50% from a year prior and the most since the second quarter of 2022, ICE found. View the full article

Surveyed employees at top mortgage companies say pay is solid: 83% feel fairly compensated, with bonuses, benefits, and flexible options helping recognize hard work. View the full article

Former CEO Michael Strauss, who's left a wake of debts in New York, has no assets of value for plaintiffs to recover even if they secured default judgment. View the full article

PHH Mortgage's new name comes after a recent sale of reverse lending assets and also arrives less than two years after Onity Group itself rebranded. View the full article

CEO Anthony Hsieh said refinances should provide notable benefit to its direct lending unit a day after LoanDepot announced a return to the wholesale channel. View the full article

On an adjusted basis, reverse mortgage company Finance of America reported $14 million in net income, down from $33 million in the third quarter. View the full article

FIGRE 2026-HF3 will repay noteholders on a pro rata basis but is subject to a provision that requires the deal to repay noteholders sequentially after a credit event. View the full article

The Federal Open Market Committee is widely expected to keep interest rates steady when it concludes its regular meeting tomorrow, but rising uncertainty about inflation in the wake of the Iran war is clouding the monetary policy outlook. View the full article

RATE 2026-J1 has a seasoned probability of default of 6.4% and 1.3% on the 'AAA' and 'B' rating stress levels, respectively. View the full article

The deal benefits from three accounts–a Funding, Expense Reserve and Interest Reserve. The Funding Account will fund draws and purchase additional loans. View the full article

The House Financial Services Committee passed a legislative package heavily favored by banks in a 26-16 vote View the full article

While this only shows a 2-basis-point rise in the 30-year fixed since last week, the Lender Price product and pricing engine data is 30 basis points higher. View the full article

The bank exited the $1.95-trillion asset cap last year, but it had remained subject to the rest of the eight-year-old order. View the full article

Borrowers or lenders could use the prediction markets as a hedging tool, although experts noted the lack of trading volume as cause for caution. View the full article

Treasury yields swung wildly after a soft jobs report as oil's surge added a new complication for the Fed, raising concerns about the rate path ahead, according to the head of correspondent business development at AD Mortgage. View the full article

Nonagency underwriting is expanding but the public sector is a different story due to recent performance issues, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. View the full article

Comptroller of the Currency Jonathan Gould said that the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency would continue to pursue its view on federal preemption of state banking policy in court and in Congress. View the full article

The increase in borrowing costs coincides with a sharp rise in the 10-year US Treasury yield, which is correlated with mortgage rates, as war with Iran disrupted oil flows and sparked concerns about inflation. View the full article

Some of the best mortgage companies to work for discuss how they incorporate community service in their plans and the resulting business and personnel benefits. View the full article

Caution around the move is growing as focus has shifted to affordability, and current trading prices make near-term action unlikely, according to Wedbush. View the full article

CEO Vishal Garg said he expects his firm's brokering loans for Credit Karma to make the consumer platform the largest originator in the country. View the full article

Along with the AI tools, ICE Mortgage Technology also added 16 exception-based automation servicing agents with directly integration to its servicing platform. View the full article

The former Rocket employee said she faced pressure to resign after requesting remote-work accommodations and leaves of absence to deal with health conditions. View the full article