Real Estate Broker/Agency News

5 TikTok accounts every LO should be following

Are you on TikTok yet? Your future borrowers could be – the social media app is expected to reach 1.8 billion users by the end of 2022, with many users falling under the Millennial and Gen Z umbrellas. As more of these younger borrowers begin to show interest in buying

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Mortgage applications rise ahead of Fed’s meeting

Demand for mortgage loans increased for the first time in six weeks, ahead of the Federal Reserve’s meeting on Wednesday, when observers expect at least another 75 basis points hike to the federal funds rate.  According to the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA), the market composite index, a measure of mortgage

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How LOs are dealing with a mortgage rate lockdown

Mortgage rates in the 6% range have frozen the housing market, forcing loan officers to find business outside their wheelhouses. Business is at a “dead stop,” said a retail loan officer in Michigan. With mortgage rates nearly doubling from the start of 2022, the LO, who has more than 20

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Angel Oak launches 6th securitization deal this year

Atlanta-based non-QM lender Angel Oak Cos., through its mortgage-backed securities conduit Angel Mortgage Trust, has unveiled its sixth private-label securities (PLS) offering of 2022, even as fast-rising interest rates have jumped far ahead of the lower-rate legacy loans securing the deal. The average coupon is 5% for the pool of 795 non-qualified

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What does the new normal for first-time homebuyers look like?

Before the pandemic, the historical average of annualized house price growth was approximately 4%. Yet, pandemic-era dynamics exacerbated an already large housing demand and supply imbalance, fueling record-breaking annual house price growth, peaking at nearly 21%. Today, as affordability wanes and housing supply ticks up, house price growth is decelerating

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How a small lender is navigating the turbulent market

Delray Beach, Florida-based mortgage lender ResMac, Inc., like many others, has trimmed its workforce so its cost structure is in line with reduced origination volume. The company is focused on expanding beyond residential loans amid a price war and surging rates. To grow in the coming years, it seeks to

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Mortgage rate volatility affecting pace of new home sales

New home purchase applications in August were down year over year but rebounded after four consecutive months of declines despite higher mortgage rates, declining homebuilder sentiment and looming economic uncertainty, the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) said. The MBA’s builder application survey (BAS) data for August showed mortgage applications for new

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Housing starts rise in August even as builder confidence falls

Even as homebuilder sentiment continued to slide in September, reaching its lowest level since May 2014, housing starts were on the rise in August, increasing 12.2% from July, according to a report released Tuesday by U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. In August, housing starts rose

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