The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) officially implemented an updated pricing framework for Loan-Level Price Adjustments (LLPAs) in May to improve homeownership prospects for first-time homebuyers with lower income and weaker credit scores. It’s a simple goal, but as is often the case in U.S. … Continue readingFHA or conventional? After LLPA tweaks, the calculus changes for some
Tracey Velt, senior director of data and content It’s official, there’s a new sheriff in town and his name is Glenn Sanford, founder of eXp Holdings and CEO of eXp Realty. The firm moved from number three to number one by transaction sides in the … Continue readingHousingWire Magazine: RealTrends 500 Supplement
Mortgage rates jumped last week amid a debt ceiling impasse and expectations of another federal funds rate hike. However, rates have started to reverse course over the last few days, following news of a debt agreement and signals that the Federal Reserve may pause hikes. On … Continue readingMortgage rates trend down amid lower monetary, fiscal pressures
The California State Senate passed a bill this week that would permit the construction of affordable housing units on land owned by faith-based institutions and nonprofit colleges, even if local zoning ordinances and laws would normally prevent construction. The bill, introduced last December by Sen. … Continue readingCalifornia Senate OKs bill for affordable housing on nonprofit-owned land
Are you ready to roll up your sleeves and get to work? We’ve heard a main goal for you this year is growing your market share, but fair warning, it’s not going to happen without some serious intentionality and strategizing. At HousingWire Annual this year, … Continue readingMarketing leader Jon Lyons to speak at HW Annual
Brena Nath, Director of HW+ and Events TO QUOTE BON JOVI, “Whoa, we’re halfway there!” The last six months in the housing market were tough. 2023 has been a year that started off with some renewed optimism thanks to an uptick in housing activity but … Continue readingHousingWire Magazine: The Real Estate Issue
Connecticut-based lender and servicer Planet Home Lending has acquired the assets of Illinois-based retail lender Platinum Home Mortgage Corporation. The financial terms of the transaction have not been disclosed. With the acquisition, Planet will inherit the majority of Platinum’s origination staff and branches throughout the country. The deal also … Continue readingPlanet acquires Platinum Home Mortgage Corporation
More than 32 million single-family homes and 1 million multi-family properties across the country are now at risk of damages from hurricane-force winds, with a combined total reconstruction cost of $11.6 trillion. And, the risk related to these types of damages has only intensified in … Continue readingMore than 32 million homes at risk of damages from hurricane-force winds
The private-label and agency mortgage-backed securities (MBS) markets, the primary sources of liquidity for many mortgage lenders, are taking a beating so far this year. That dour performance mirrors what’s happening in the primary mortgage market — where origination volume is down drastically year to … Continue readingMBS issuance tumbled in Q1. Here’s how the rest of 2023 is shaping up