Mortgages

The average 30-year fixed mortgage rate for conforming loans fell, according to Freddie Mac, even as the 10-year Treasury yield rose nearly 18 basis points from the start of this week.

The community development financial institution was the nation's top non-qualified mortgage lender last year, according to one ranking.

While some said the agency was ignorant of its own rules, one trade group praised the goals of the posting.

Regulatory reform – rather than Biden's proposed solutions – is needed to fix the inventory crisis, some say, but others applauded the president's buyer cost-cutting initiatives.

February was the second consecutive month where lenders eased underwriting, although overall availability remains near record low levels, the Mortgage Bankers Association.

Many other organizations have turned to sales of this asset class in order to enhance cash flow or liquidity.

Prices in several cities came in more than 20% above what would be considered a sustainable level when compared to local economic factors, according to the rating agency's report.

The latest inflation news has created concern that the Federal Reserve's pivot on short-term rates could be delayed.

Loan volumes fell for the third straight week, with depressed demand for government lending driving activity downward, the Mortgage Bankers Association said.

A rate drop was a common concern for some servicers during the quarter, and Ocwen recently took a step aimed at better addressing this risk in the future.

The lender had previously revealed that personally identifying information from 16.6M customers had leaked, but hadn't offered these details.

While mortgage volume should rise this year, the government-sponsored enterprise expects slightly less activity than it did back in January.

The 30-year average rate got closer to 7% as central bank officials dashed near-term hopes of a cut, according to Freddie Mac.

Mortgage application activity had its largest decline in a year, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

For the first time since mid-December, the Freddie Mac survey reports mortgage rates over 6.7%.

The company was able release credit reserves because of actual and forecasted prices that boosted net income, CEO Priscilla Almodovar said.

The government-sponsored enterprise financed 955,000 mortgages last year, down from the 1.8 million loans it backed in 2022.

January volume increased 36% compared to the month before and the annual decline in activity was the lowest in almost two years, Optimal Blue said.

Only a few dozen mortgage firms could likely afford the $7 million ad for this year's big game, a marketing veteran said.

While the Freddie Mac survey reported just a 1 basis point increase from last week, Zillow's tracker found a 30 basis point rise in the 30-year fixed, more reflective of what happened in the bond market.