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By Rob Chrisman Posted To: Pipeline Press As thousands of MBA conference attendees head for the DC airports, what’s the chatter? Regulators who want to remind lenders that not being able to afford a compliance department doesn’t allow a company to make RESPA violations. That it is perfectly legal for builders to offer granite countertops, and to have a preferred …

By Jann Swanson Posted To: MND NewsWire Purchase mortgage originations are expected to increase a bit in 2019, but not by enough to offset the continuing decline in refinancing. A forecast from the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA), released Tuesday at its 2018 Annual Convention and Expo, predicts a 4.2 percent gain over the 2018 volume of purchase mortgages next year …

By Jann Swanson Posted To: MND NewsWire Mortgage applications were down last week by the largest seasonally adjusted percentage since September 2017 . The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) said its Market Composite Index, a measure of application volume, dropped by 7.1 percent during the week ended October 12, and was down 7.0 percent unadjusted. There was a minor holiday, Columbus …

By Matthew Graham Posted To: MBS Commentary The S&P recovered roughly half of its losses from last week today, decisively breaking out of the consolidation pattern that had been in place through this morning. Bonds, on the other hand, are still in the consolidation pattern that accompanied the stock market volatility. In that sense, it was a good day (i.e. …

By Matthew Graham Posted To: Mortgage Rate Watch Mortgage rates didn’t move much today. Some lenders were perfectly unchanged, but the average lender was just slightly higher. That’s at odds with underlying bond market movement (which directly impacts rates)–at least at first glance. Specifically, the bonds underlying mortgages were slightly stronger today. That would imply slightly lower mortgage rates. So …

By jguerin@housingwire.com Valuations provider Veros predicts seven of the 10 top-appreciating markets in the next 12 months will be in Washington and Nevada, and that the most populated metro areas will see a 4.5% uptick in appreciation. “We are forecasting that the overwhelming number of metros across the nation, approximately 97%, will appreciate,” said Eric Fox, VP of statistical and …

By Jann Swanson Posted To: MND NewsWire Recent research from Trulia shows home price reductions are increasing . The share of homes for sale that have had at least one price cut since being listed is the highest since 2014. This, the company says, is more evidence that the market may finally be tilting in homebuyers favor, but the benefits …

By Jann Swanson Posted To: MND NewsWire Builder confidence ticked up 1 point in October, rising to 68. The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), which produces the NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI) says this measure of confidence levels has held in the high 60s since June. “Builders are motivated by solid housing demand, fueled by a growing economy …