Taken from the October/November issue of HousingWire Magazine, Sundae aims to aggregate demand from “fix and flippers,” who use the marketplace to bid against each other for distressed properties. Earlier this year, the company raised $16.55 million in Series A funding. QED Investors led the
Time to close on mortgages growing amid soaring volume
Ellie Mae’s Origination Insight report for October demonstrates some of the side effects of the historically low mortgage rates we’ve seen in 2020: incredibly high volume and an increase in time-to-close. Across the board, 30-year mortgage rates decreased on average
Mnuchin moves to end emergency programs. How would it affect housing?
On Thursday, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin rolled grenades down Wall Street and Main Street: he said he would not extend several emergency lending programs beyond Dec. 31, and also asked the Federal Reserve to return a portion of $195 billion
Case Study: How Sierra Pacific Mortgage increased underwriting capacity
Recent tech innovations have targeted point of sale or specific underwriting tasks to improve operational efficiencies, leaving the manual review of appraisals as an underexplored area ripe for digitization and automation. Collateral underwriting turn times in particular have been slowing
Housing Tech Rundown: Quantarium, Equifax and Ellie Mae
Artificial Intelligence company Quantarium announced on Thursday its partnership with Valligent Technologies to launch a condition adjusted “Quantarium Valuation Model” for equity lending, broker price opinions and real estate owned valuations. The latest tech, coined QVM-Insights, leverages Quantariums AI power
NAR launches interactive training to combat housing discrimination
The National Association of Realtors has rolled out a new, free interactive training platform designed to help combat discrimination in the real estate industry called Fairhaven. Fairhaven is a fair housing simulation exercise that will be offered directly to NAR
Here’s what to expect from a Biden administration regarding housing
We are now under 60 days remaining until we have President Biden and Vice President Harris leading a new administration in D.C. Beyond any political views of the election and the ensuing drama, industry is asking: What will a Biden
Industry gives mixed reviews of FHFA’s Final Capital Rule
The mortgage industry is responding with mixed reviews to the Federal Housing Finance Agency‘s Final Capital Rule for mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which it released on Wednesday. The final rule mandates that the GSEs maintain tier 1 capital in excess of
Companies with MISMO RON certificate double in three months
Digital notary platform NotaryCam announced on Wednesday it has been awarded the Remote Online Notarization (RON) Compliance Certification through the Mortgage Industry Standard Maintenance Organization (MISMO) – making it the eighth company to receive the specialized certification. Originally introduced in April, the MISMO RON compliance
The housing market is hot, but not in a bubble
Existing home sales came in at a whopping 6,850,000, beating estimates with the highest print since 2006. Days on market fell from 36 days to 21 days on a year-over-year basis. Cash buyers remain at a historically high level of
How will California’s Proposition 19 impact property taxes?
A slim majority of California residents voted in favor of Proposition 19 on Election Day, green-lighting a motion that gives new property tax breaks to older homeowners while increasing property taxes for those inheriting their parents’ or grandparents’ properties. The
DOJ sues NAR for alleged antitrust violations
The Department of Justice (DOJ) filed a lawsuit against the National Association of Realtors (NAR) on Thursday, alleging a series of violations of antitrust law, including commission arrangements and consumer disclosure requirements. NAR has adopted a “series of rules, policies,
Mortgage rates break record again, down to 2.72%
The average U.S. mortgage rate for a 30-year fixed loan fell this week to 2.72%, Freddie Mac said in a report on Thursday – the lowest rate in the survey’s near 50-year history. This week’s rate broke the previous record set on Nov. 5 by 6
Existing home sales increase for the fifth month in a row
Existing home sales grew for the fifth consecutive month in October, up 4.3% from September to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 6.85 million, according to a report from the National Association of Realtors on Thursday. Compared to last October,
Knock’s Home Swap solution expands to North Carolina
Homeowners in Charlotte, North Carolina and Raleigh, North Carolina can now use Knock Home Swap to purchase their new home before selling their old one. The solution is now available in 11 markets in six states. Home Swap is offered
FHFA issues Final Capital Rule for Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac
The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) released its Final Capital Rule Wednesday for mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac as it continues to work toward ending conservatorship. The final rule mandates that the GSEs maintain tier 1 capital in
Title technology is critical for digital mortgage success
At the Notarize Rewired event Wednesday on the panel, Home Buying After COVID, four experts talked about some of the largest pain points in the title industry. When asked if they could change one thing, or “wave a magic wand,”
Texas homeownership rate reaches an all-time high
The homeownership rate in Texas rose to an all-time high of 70% in the third quarter, exceeding the national metric for the first time since 2012, according to a report from the Texas A&M Real Estate Center. Texas home sales
Are borrower-assisted inspections here to stay?
HousingWire recently spoke with CoreLogic’s Chief Appraiser Shawn Telford about re-examining traditional appraisal workflows in light of the changes brought on by COVID-19. HousingWire: What changes have appraisers had to make to their workflows in light of social distancing and
The Hawaii housing market heats up
Real estate agents across the country have made it clear – low inventory and low mortgage rates have kept them busy throughout the pandemic, especially in typical vacation destinations. That trend is holding true for the housing market in Hawaii,
Increase in housing starts has construction playing catch-up
Single-family housing starts gained for the sixth consecutive month in October on an annualized pace not seen since April 2007, a Census Bureau report released Wednesday revealed. Housing starts overall rose 4.9% in October compared to September’s pace and to
The 10 most popular cities for out-of-town homebuyers
Out-of-town moves are on the rise, and it’s largely thanks to the pandemic. Some homebuyers are looking to move closer to friends and family, while others are simply on the hunt for more space and a break from cramped urban
Here’s what to expect in the mortgage application process
Home shoppers and sellers are flooding the market with demand, creating recording-breaking volume and unique opportunities for people looking to get in on the action. With both parties in the home-buying process fueling the market, there are plenty of success
Mortgage applications see slight decrease, despite purchase gain
[CORRECTION: The story has been updated to reflect that the MBA projects $3.39 trillion instead of $3.9 trillion] Mortgage applications decreased 0.3% last week, following a 0.5% drop from the beginning of November, according to a report from the Mortgage