From retail to restaurants, the COVID-19 pandemic has taken out tens of thousands of businesses nationwide. But minority-owned companies have fared much worse than their white counterparts, largely due to limited access to capital. The number of active business owners
What can cool down housing demand? The 10-year yield above 1.94% might
The Census Bureau‘s new home sales report released Tuesday hailed another defeat to the housing bears’ doom and gloom predictions for 2020 after COVID-19 hit our economy. There may have never been another time in the history of America when the bears
Mortgage lending will beat 2019 by $1 trillion, Fannie says
Mortgage lending this year likely will total $3.4 trillion, about $1 trillion higher than 2019, as low rates boost refinancings, Fannie Mae said in a forecast. That would be the highest level of originations since 2003’s $3.8 trillion, according to
The benefits of RON go beyond the era of social distancing
HousingWire spoke with Altisource Vice President of Product Ben Hall about the increased adoption of remote online notarization (RON) and how Altisource supports lenders looking to move to full eClosings. HousingWire: The COVID-19 pandemic has fueled the conversation around wider
Record-Breaking Housing Market Continues: Prices Climb 11%, Pending Sales Up 15%
Key takeaways for the 4-week period ending August 16: Median home sale prices climbed further to a new all-time high of $316,375, an increase of 11% from 2019 and the largest year-over-year gain since early 2014. Pending home sales were
Sales of New-Construction Homes Rebound to Pre-Coronavirus Levels, Rising 10% in July
A surge in homebuilding before the pandemic is now driving growth in new-home sales. A shift to the suburbs and record-low mortgage rates are also contributing factors. Sales of newly-built homes climbed 10.1% year over year in July, recovering to
[PULSE] Accountability is more important than action, and nothing happens without action
Note: This is part four of a five-part series. Over the following weeks, Todd Duncan, sales entrepreneur and New York Times best-selling author, will showcase principles for mortgage and real estate professionals to embrace for success. Find more advice in
80% of economists see a chance of a double-dip recession
Almost 80% of economists say there’s at least a one-in-four chance of a double-dip recession, following a record 32.9% plunge in GDP in the second quarter, according to a survey released on Monday from the National Association for Business Economics.
Forbearance rate falls to 7.2%, MBA says
The U.S. forbearance rate declined for the second consecutive week, falling to the lowest level since mid-April, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. The share of mortgages with agreements to suspend payments fell to 7.2% from 7.21%, MBA said in
Broad coalition of housing organizations urge Congress to start protecting renters and property owners
In a letter addressed to congressional leaders, the Department of Housing and Urban Development, the Department of Treasury and the National Economic Council, a coalition of 31 housing organizations and industry trade associations urged the administration to immediately restart negotiating
There are now 4 providers with MISMO RON Compliance Certification
e-Closing platform Pavaso announced on Monday it has been awarded the Remote Online Notarization Compliance Certification through the Mortgage Industry Standard Maintenance Organization – making it the fourth company to receive the specialized certification. Originally introduced in April, the MISMO
Denver real estate agent fired for removing Black Lives Matter signs from front yards
A Denver-based real estate agent has been fired after removing Black Lives Matter signs from front yards, the Associated Press reported on Wednesday. It all started when a resident in a Denver neighborhood was walking his dog and noticed the
James Kleimann of The Real Deal joins HousingWire
James Kleimann is joining HousingWire as Mortgage Editor to help the company sharpen coverage in housing finance, while also expanding into other housing verticals like real estate, title/escrow and appraisal. Working alongside HousingWire Editor in Chief Sarah Wheeler, Kleimann will
Here are the 2020 HW Insiders
Operations have become increasingly important in today’s environment, and some companies have even offered sign-on bonuses for these roles as the need for them heightens. Many of the 2020 HW Insiders are from these operations roles, and their talent was
US Housing Market Forecast 2020 & 2021: Will It Crash or Recover?
Here are the updated housing market trends—home prices, forecast, inventory, and sales. If you’re wondering what the state of the housing market 2020 will be like over the next six months, especially if you’re an investor, then here is some
For Millennials who want to buy a home right now, the Great Recession still looms large
If the Great Recession never happened, how would potential homebuyers be looking at today’s housing market? After all, the giant cohort of potential homebuyers now in their late 20s and early 30s was also the generation fresh out of college
Fed purchases of agency MBS total $892 billion
Five months after restarting a bond-buying program last used in the financial crisis, the Federal Reserve has purchased about $892 billion of agency mortgage-backed securities, according to a Fed blog post on Thursday. The asset-buying has helped to drive mortgage
Is the FHFA about to delay the refi fee?
According to reporting by the Wall Street Journal on Saturday, the Federal Housing Finance Agency has been communicating with mortgage industry groups about delaying the implementation of a fee which would add a 0.5% surcharge to refinance mortgages sold to
A coastal exodus? These Century 21 San Francisco agents don’t think so
Although many in the real estate industry say that San Franciscans are relocating to places more inland, some Century 21 agents in the San Francisco and Bay Area beg to differ. Suburban ZIP codes might be more popular these days,
There’s a problem with the data measuring delinquency and forbearance
According to the U.S Census Bureau’s latest Household Pulse Survey, close to 21% of both Black and Hispanic homeowners missed or deferred the previous month’s mortgage payment compared to 10% of white homeowners. However, Jung Hyun Choi, research associate at
Property foreclosure website RealtyTrac prepares for growth with rehire of Rick Sharga
ATTOM Data Solutions’ RealtyTrac, a foreclosure listings and search portal, added industry veteran Rick Sharga back into its ranks earlier this month in a move that foreshadows what the company sees for its future. Sharga will oversee RealtyTrac’s marketing and
Late-term mortgage delinquencies rise on forbearances
The number of seriously delinquent mortgages, meaning payments overdue by 90 days or more, soared to a 10-year high during July in a tally that counts forbearances. There were 2.25 million home loans that were seriously delinquent last month as
Are existing home sales showing a housing bubble?
Today, existing home sales blew out estimates, coming in at 5,860,000. With new home sales, pending home sales, housing starts, housing permits, and purchase applications already in v-shape recovery mode, this last metric completes the v-shaped recovery across the board
Miami Real Estate Market & Investment Overview 2020
As we enter into the 3rd quarter of 2020, Miami remains a buyers’ market and investors need to capitalize on this advantage while it is still there. We will discuss the latest Miami real estate market trends and find out
