Author: Michael Gersitz

Buyer-generated content, including consumer reviews of builders, is now available on Zillow and will be viewable on builder profiles, community pages and paid new construction listings. Builder Ratings and Reviews was launched Wednesday and surveys new homeowners at move-in asking

Mortgage applications fell 3.3% last week after interest rates rose to their highest level in two weeks, according to a report from the Mortgage Bankers Association. The refinance index also fell 5% from the previous week, however, it was 38%

The Federal Housing Administration has announced an upcoming release of its FHA Catalyst: Electronic Appraisal Delivery module on the FHA Catalyst platform. This solution will allow lenders to electronically submit, track, and manage single-family property appraisals and will become available

Across the nation, people are spending more time in their homes than ever before due to the COVID-19 outbreak. Homeownership allows individuals to design a space where they live, work and perhaps homeschool their children. Women no longer feel they

Last week, the MBA reported that refinance activity rose to its highest level since May, now accounting for 65.7% of total applications – and everyone involved in the mortgage process is working hard to make sure those transactions go through.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is proposing a new category of qualified mortgages called Seasoned QM, which would require loans to meet certain performance requirements over a 36-month seasoning period. The CFPB said they hope this new category will “encourage

New home construction continues to climb, as privately owned single-family housing starts in July were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.496 million, a 22.6% jump from June, according to a new report from the U.S. Census Bureau. Privately

Seeking to alleviate financial hardships on consumers, two bills; H.R. 6370 and S.3508, ‘‘Disaster Protection for Workers’ Credit Act of 2020’,’ have been introduced in Congress that amend the Fair Credit Reporting Act by placing a moratorium on reporting any

Compared to last year, the housing market this year has seen some big changes. Notably, people are moving inland from the large cities as the pandemic has created a coastal exodus, prompting apartment dwellers to seek more space and big

The Census report on new construction showed a whopping 22.6% increase above the revised June estimate in housing starts in July. Year-over-year starts are up 23.4%. This means we can add housing starts to our growing collection of V-shaped recovery

After Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac announced an added 50 basis point fee to all refinances, the housing industry was quick to react. Today, the National Association of Mortgage Brokers announced growing support behind its campaign to reverse the newly

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the two largest mortgage financiers in the world, on Wednesday night announced they would impose a 0.5% fee on every refinanced mortgage starting Sept. 1. Look for it to become an issue in the campaign.

For the past two weeks, HousingWire took a deep dive into the effects an accelerated market can have on appraisal turn times and the delta between appraisal ratings and market forecasts. This week, industry experts discuss how to navigate client

Notarize has brought on Wendy Ivanoski as its vice president of Enterprise Strategy and Nicole Booth as executive vice president of Public Affairs. Ivanoski has 17 years of experience in the financial services industry, including time at State Street Corporation

After COVID-19 paused travel, short-term rentals actually fared much better than hotels year-over-year, a new study said. As of June 21, short-term rental revenue per available room was down just 4.5%, while hotel revenue per available room was down a

The mix of working from home and renters seeking more space – albeit cheaper space – is pushing more people out of more expensive U.S. cities and moving into the suburbs. Particularly, Millennials are fleeing New York City for more

Mortgage lender NewRez is currently hiring for over 750 positions in its origination division. The company is seeking to fill positions in all four of its business channels – direct to consumer, JV/retail, wholesale and correspondent lending. Current openings include