This has been a year of contradictions for mortgage lending. Rates remain elevated, inventory is scarce, origination volumes are weak — yet one segment of the market continues to surge. Non-QM isn’t simply performing well in a difficult environment; it has become the unexpected center of gravity for the entire industry. At MBA Annual and […]
Why non-QM underwriting is guiding mortgage lending’s future Read More »
Rocket Mortgage has come out with a debt service coverage ratio product in both its wholesale and retail channels, joining a rather competitive landscape of both non-qualified mortgage specialists and more traditional lenders like its rival United Wholesale Mortgage, that already serve investors looking to finance rental properties. Another recent entrant with a suite of
Rocket latest lender to add debt service coverage mortgages Read More »
High prices, tight affordability and general uncertainty continue to hold back would-be buyers. Redfin estimates that there approximately 500,000 more sellers are active in the market than buyers, giving the few active buyers more leverage on price and concessions. “Homebuying activity has stabilized at below-normal levels,” said Asad Khan, Redfin senior economist. “Many would-be homebuyers
Uneven signals mark a housing market stuck in neutral Read More »
Independent mortgage bankers reported a second consecutive quarter of profits on their loan production, helped by the September rate drop and surge in application volume, the Mortgage Bankers Association said. Between originations and servicing income, roughly 85% of the 325 companies which participated in the Quarterly Mortgage Bankers Performance Report were profitable. “After a series
Loan profits improve for IMBs in 3Q Read More »
Fraud and misrepresentation remain persistent challenges in the mortgage industry and Freddie Mac is responding by bringing Quality Control Advisor Plus to the market, a tool which automates this compliance function. The tool is currently in a phased onboarding process with plans to make it available to all lenders by year-end, including the participants in
Freddie Mac adds mortgage quality control automation tool Read More »
Mortgage application fraud risk increased on an annual basis during the third quarter as one in every 118 applications had indicators of potential misstatements, according to Cotality. When compared with the third quarter of 2024, fraud risk increased by 8.2% but this dropped by 2.7% from the previous quarter, the National Mortgage Application Fraud Risk
Mortgage fraud risk rises on growth of investor properties Read More »
Waterstone Mortgage is an independent mortgage banker which happens to be a fully owned asset of a bank, explained Jeff McGuiness, its president and CEO. It outperformed the plan submitted to its holding company, Waterstone Financial, and was profitable for all of 2024 and so far in 2025, looking primarily at its origination business and
Waterstone Mortgage on its structure and profitability Read More »
While there are legitimate means to allow consumers to boost their credit scores, others – not just individuals but also industrial or institutional actors – engage in a practice known as credit washing. The practice takes advantage of something people are allowed to do: challenge erroneous information on their credit reports. But in credit washing,
Credit washing rose nearly 700% over 2 years: Transunion Read More »
A change in mindset, away from the transactional and more towards creating relationships has led to higher customer satisfaction scores, improved trust and increased levels of brand loyalty, the latest J.D. Power survey found. But in what can be termed as a surprise in the results, Citi had the highest score in the 2025 U.S.
Citi tops J.D. Power mortgage satisfaction rankings Read More »
While the publicly traded title underwriters across the board reported improved third quarter results on a year-over-year comparison, helped by September’s refinance activity that several mortgage lenders referred to in their results. The biggest news from the sector came after the quarter ended, with three of the companies announcing merger and acquisition deals. Fidelity
Refis drive better 3Q for major title insurers Read More »