Mortgage brokers’ compensation is in the spotlight after a recent Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) test concluded that some financial institutions failed to prove that payments were “reasonably related” to the value of services provided. In its March Supervisory Highlights, the FDIC stat

Nominations for the 2024 Marketing Leaders award are open now through April 30. This prestigious accolade recognizes the visionaries, innovators and strategists who have set new standards of marketing excellence in mortgage and real estate. HousingWire is proud to have recognized a slew of industry

Mortgage demand increased slightly for the first time in four weeks, with a modest uptick in refinance applications leading the way. But don’t expect it to continue.Mortgage applications increased by 0.1% on a seasonally adjusted basis during the week ending April 5, according to the Mortgage Banker

The Conference of State Bank Supervisors (CSBS) and the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) have signed onto a memorandum of understanding to formally share information between each other related to nonbank mortgage companies.“The [MOU] establishes substantive information sharing protocols between

The U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs (V.A.) announced on Wednesday morning a program to purchase defaulted V.A. loans from mortgage services and place them in its portfolio at a fixed 2.5% interest rate. The Veteran Affairs Servicing Purchase (VASP) program attempts to prevent foreclosure actions

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is considering a ban on mortgage banks charging homebuyers for the lender’s title insurance policy, according to a report by Bloomberg.Lender’s title policies protect lenders from issues that may arise with the title of the property, but they are paid by the

Kansas City-based Heartland Multiple Listing Service (MLS) has announced a strategic integration with Down Payment Resource (DPR) to enhance accessibility to homeownership for residents across the Greater Kansas City area.DPR, known in the housing industry for its database and homebuyer assistance p

Last month, Northeast regional lender WSFS Mortgage released the results of a survey that measured reverse mortgage product sentiments. It found that more people seem to be aware of the potential value that a reverse mortgage could provide for older homeowners, including as a tool to age in place an

Keller Williams was named to an eighth class-action lawsuit that takes issue with alterations made to the brokerage’s profit-sharing program. In the past few weeks, seven agents formerly affiliated with Keller Williams — Jerri Moulder, David Bueker, Robert Hill, Kevin Ortiz, Edward Fordyce, Paul Dav

Fannie Mae this month issued a recent progress report on its ongoing effort to scan appraisal reports for “prohibited or subjective language,” updating stakeholders on a process that began in 2021 to rid appraisal reports and valuation decisions of verbiage that could be construed as contributing to

Baby boomers are exhibiting an overwhelming desire to age in place in their own homes, but their children — largely members of Generation X — are also making their desires felt by seeking out homes that can accommodate their needs as they get older, according to a recent report from the New York Tim

Mortgage rates remained unchanged last week despite the release of the stronger-than-expected jobs report. HousingWire’s Mortgage Rates Center showed the average 30-year fixed rate for conventional loans at 7.16% on Tuesday, unchanged from one week earlier. At the same time one year ago, the 30-year

Rocket Mortgage’s bet on artificial intelligence (AI) has resulted in a patented platform called Rocket Logic, which can automatically process nearly 90% of data points extracted from documents in a month and reduce by 25% the number of times a professional interacts with a mortgage loan year over y

It’s an election year, and housing affordability appears to be a big concern for voters. So, it’s not surprising to see the administration and members of Congress announcing big-ticket legislative initiatives to boost homeownership — like a first-time homebuyer tax credit and the Neighborhood Invest

In a message to mortgage brokers, United Wholesale Mortgage (UWM) defended itself from the Hunterbrook Media report that claims the lender orchestrated a scheme to steer loans. The wholesale lender said it’s offering legal support to partners in case they are sued and once again accused Rocket Mortg

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) announced this week that it has appointed Tracy Stephan to serve as its chief artificial intelligence officer (CAIO), adding the position to her existing duties leading the agency’s Office of Financial Technology.Stephan is described as a 25-year veteran in

Insurance companies are leveraging aerial images of homes to drop properties deemed too risky, according to a report by The Wall Street Journal. Consumer advocates are concerned that customers are not always able to challenge images that could be out of date or inaccurate. The increased use of aeria

After a few months of downward data in its performance metrics, the reverse mortgage industry saw a slightly different story play out in March that should come as welcome news.Home Equity Conversion Mortgage (HECM) endorsements increased 8.3% to 2,058 loans in March, an increase helped by new case n

With the Easter holiday last week, data for housing inventory, new listings and the pace of new contracts started all took a breather from their growth pace. Each of those notched down from a week ago and compared to a year ago. This is a holiday effect and it should all be reversed back onto the ye

The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA)’s policy advocacy group, the Mortgage Action Alliance (MAA), is urging its members in the state of Massachusetts to support the continued use of remote telephone and video counseling for reverse mortgages in the state following the lapse of an exemption allowin