News

While the United States may not have been prepared to combat a deadly virus, a quick and robust response from the Federal Reserve, along with changing consumer preferences, created a perfect storm that resulted in a record year for the

2020 served as a real litmus test for mortgage technology and fintech. Between having to transition whole teams to work from home — in some cases over just a weekend — to dealing with crushing origination volume, companies could clearly

U.S. pending home sales slid for the third consecutive month in November, dropping 2.6% from October, according to a report from the National Association of Realtors. However, year-over-year contract signings were still up by 16.4%. “The latest monthly decline is

The number of mortgages in active forbearance rose by 20,000 last week, according to a Friday report from Black Knight. Though the raw number increased, the number of mortgages in active forbearance remained at 5.3%, unchanged from the week prior.

Frank Nothaft Executive and Chief Economist at CoreLogic This is the third installment of our economist Q&A series. Every Tuesday in December, HousingWire has interviewed a top economist in the HW+ Slack channel. The 2021 housing market forecasts have focused on

The shift to AI-powered technology is rapidly taking over the mortgage industry with leaders turning to machine learning to increase efficiency amid COVID-19. With the move toward a remote workforce and the real estate market booming, this technology is an

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) announced Monday it is requesting input on the appraisal policies, practices and processes of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, especially as it relates to the GSEs’ appraisal modernization efforts. The Request for Input (RFI)

President Donald Trump on Sunday officially signed the second COVID-19 relief and government stimulus bill, after a back-and-forth with Congress on the amount of money that will be sent directly to consumers. The $2.3 trillion bill gives $600 in direct

Although I had pockets of joy in 2020, these moments were subsumed in a haze of stress, uncertainty and fear for our country. And, at times, I have found it difficult to keep these emotions from clouding my economic thinking.

Real estate agents across the U.S. have been busy as a result of the pent-up demand from homebuyers due to COVID-19. From facing uncertainty in March from COVID-19-related shutdowns, to seeing home sales skyrocket through the summer into fall, it

The average U.S. mortgage rate for a 30-year fixed loan fell one basis point this week to 2.66% – the lowest rate in the Freddie Mac’s Primary Mortgage Market Survey’s near 50-year history. This week’s mortgage rate broke the previous record set on

Home services tech startup Porch.com made its debut on the Nasdaq Stock Exchange Thursday morning at a valuation of $523 million. The software firm, which merged with special purpose acquisition company Proptech Acquisition Corp., opened trading on Thursday at $15

In the wake of the new financial stimulus bill, the American Land Title Association looked back at the thousands of jobs that have been saved so far by the Paycheck Protection Program. This week Congress passed a $900 billion stimulus

Daryl FairweatherRedfin Chief Economist This is the second installment of our economist Q&A series of the top housing market forecasts for 2021 that focus on everything from home sales to mortgage rates. To help provide as much guidance as possible

The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated the issues around affordable housing and access to it. In particular, the pandemic has disproportionately impacted housing opportunities for individuals and communities of color. Millions of jobs have been lost, and a lot of those

Sales of newly built homes occurred at a seasonally-adjusted annual rate of 841,000 in November – 11% below October’s 945,000 revised rate, the Census Bureau reported on Wednesday. Despite a double-digit decline, November’s numbers are still nearly 21% higher than

Reports on housing data are headline-driven, and headlines are designed to cause folks to overreact in both positive and negative ways. We’ve seen our share of hyperbolic headlines in the housing reports this year, and for that reason, I have

Multifamily property owners who are struggling to make mortgage payments due to the coronavirus pandemic now have a reprieve through the end of March for mortgages backed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the Federal Housing Finance Agency announced on

Despite the pandemic, incredibly, the housing market has surpassed all expectations in 2020. Applications to purchase a home hit a low point in the spring due to stay-at-home orders and mandated business closures, but have rebounded swiftly. As of the

The impact of COVID on the real estate market is significant and has forever changed the way our industry operates. This change, while disruptive and uncomfortable for some, has provoked the rapid adoption of real estate technology, the likes of

LoanDepot and Brookfield Residential announced on Wednesday the creation of a joint venture, BRP Home Mortgage. BRP will deliver a streamlined mortgage experience for Brookfield Residential homebuyers, said Dan Peña, executive vice president of national joint ventures for loanDepot. Homebuyers