housing wire

The Senate is banking on extending mortgage fees that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac indirectly charge to consumers to help pay for traditional infrastructure. According to legislative text publicly shared for the first time today by the U.S. Senate, renewing

Servicers’ forbearance portfolio volume fell yet again, this time dipping a single basis point to 3.47% from 3.48% last week, according to a survey from the Mortgage Bankers Association.  According to MBA’s estimate, 1.74 million homeowners are still in forbearance plans. The share

The COVID-19 pandemic forced the mortgage industry to digitize transactions that were once completely done in-person. And while technology has streamlined the industry, many housing professionals are still hesitant to exist in a digital landscape. This is partly due to

Digital title provider Doma has finally gone public, but has already had to pay out nearly $300 million to early investors who redeemed their shares. Backers said in March that they expected the SPAC merger to raise $645 million in

The use of remote online notarization is now permitted in Illinois, New Jersey and Oregon, bringing the number of states with RON legislation up to 37. Legislation is also pending in New York and New Hampshire, according to the American

The 2021 Women of Influence winners represent 100 of the most influential women in leadership in the housing economy. More than just breaking records in the housing finance space, the HousingWire 2021 Women of Influence are shattering glass ceilings and

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the world rushed to digitize and transactions that once happened in person were forced online. And while the housing market continued to surge amid these changes, some people were still hesitant to do business in

Mortgage lenders are looking for ways to accelerate the digital mortgage process and deliver a one-of-a-kind experience for borrowers. ICE Mortgage Technology’s Encompass eClose allows lenders to electronically order documents, collaborate with settlement agents and partners, eSign documents with borrowers,

An Oakland homeowner says the home valuation process failed her due to the color of her skin, according to a complaint filed with U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Cora Robinson, who is Black, claims that appraiser Thomas Kearney

I have been following the discussion around the competitiveness, costs and consumer benefits of U.S. Multiple Listing Services (MLS) by those trying to disparage the system. As an Irish immigrant to the United States in 1996 who became a real

As the Biden administration recently spotlighted, cybersecurity remains a high-level concern for the privacy and security of Americans. In fact, the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) has experienced a record number of reported complaints as of late, jumping from

In the last few months in my articles for HousingWire, I have written that monthly supply has been rising and that this increasing supply was the most critical metric for the housing market, specifically the new home sales market. According

The housing market is red hot. The Federal Housing Finance Agency house-price index rose 12% last year due to low inventories and high demand. Redfin, the popular real estate website, reports that nearly 40% of homes in the past month

Kenneth Farmer has been named regional underwriting counsel for First American Financial Corporation’s gulf coast title insurance, the company recently announced. Farmer, who has been promoted from within, will continue to serve as state counsel for First American Title’s Mississippi

Another week, another drop in forbearance volume. Servicers’ forbearance portfolio volume fell two basis points to 3.48% from 3.50% last week, according to a survey from the Mortgage Bankers Association.  Approximately 1.74 million homeowners are in forbearance plans, the MBA reported. The share of Fannie Mae and Freddie

“I feel the need…the need for speed.” – Maverick (Top Gun) With the increasing “need-for-speed” at which the lending community moves, keeping up is a constant task that never gets any easier. New entrants continue to join the market with

New home sales continued to slip in June, falling 6.6% from May to a pace of only 676,000, according to a recent study from the U.S. Census. It’s the third straight month of decreases and the first annual decline since

With the foreclosure moratorium for federally backed mortgages set to expire next week, the Biden administration is giving borrowers additional options to reduce their mortgage payments. The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Department of Agriculture (USDA), and Department

Three of the “Big Four” title insurers — First American Financial, Old Republic and Stewart Title — released their second-quarter earnings this week. Fidelity National will release its second-quarter earnings on Aug. 3. First American reported $2.3 billion in total

After an epic rise in housing starts and permits from the COVID-19 lows, the latest Census report shows a calm after the housing storm. This report is consistent with my prediction that all housing data will moderate from the epic run-up

Mortgage professionals never know what the industry will throw at them, so staying on top of market shifts can help originators prepare for what’s to come. De-risking efforts by GSEs, migration shifts, demographic changes and more are pushing the market

HousingWire recently sat down with Matthew Marx, CEO of Evocalize, to learn more about the importance of lead gen and referrals in a hot housing market. HousingWire: In an already high origination volume environment, why should lenders put an emphasis

KW Expansion Network will support business operations of the U.S.-based KW real estate expansion teams. Keller Williams has long been hailed as one of the first to embrace the team business model in real estate. The newly launched KW Expansion

Ransomware attackers hit major title industry cloud services provider Cloudstar, stopping an untold number of loans from closing on Monday. The ramifications for the title and mortgage industry may extend beyond the immediately impacted loan applications. Late Monday afternoon, Cloudstar’s