Purchase

While mortgage rate optimism kept consumer confidence about the home purchase market high in June, affordability worries pulled overall sentiment lower, a Fannie Mae survey said.

The refinance share of mortgage applications climbed to the highest level since January 2018 as the average 30-year fixed interest rate continued tumbling, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

Prepayment speeds for loans included in agency mortgage-backed securities were up approximately 20% both monthly and annually during May as the decline in interest rates boosted activity, according to Keefe, Bruyette & Woods.

Consumers' knowledge of the mortgage process and what it takes to purchase a home has not improved from four years ago and lenders have an opportunity to fill that need, Fannie Mae said.

Mortgage refinance applications reached their highest level in three years as interest rates plunged last week in the aftermath of the Federal Open Market Committee's March meeting.

Despite a lower rate of increase, 2019 equity gains could pull 350,000 households from being underwater on mortgages, according to CoreLogic.

As 30-year fixed-rate mortgages rose 30 basis points year-over-year, non-QM originations are estimated to grow 400% in 2019.

Slower growth to interest rates and home prices will boost housing affordability in 2019, according to Fannie Mae.

Lagging construction, rising interest rates and the broader economy don't really bode well for buyers of commercial real estate, but most CRE lenders still expect originations to increase in 2019, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

The gap between supply and demand in the housing market is contributing to affordability constraints that are likely to limit homeownership long-term, according to Freddie Mac.

Bank jumbo mortgage underwriting standards weakened in the third quarter by the most in three years and as profitability remains under pressure, loosening should continue at an accelerated pace, a Moody's report said.

Continued diversification of its business lines and better margins in its securitization activities helped Redwood Trust overcome steep mortgage origination declines and post nearly 14% annual growth in net income during the third quarter.

LoanDepot's CEO Anthony Hsieh delivered a bracing message to mortgage lenders on Monday — strong new competitors are coming into this market, so they need to expand their offerings.

Unlike the sponsor's previous four deals, which were backed at least in part by jumbo loans, all of the collateral for FSMT 2018-3INV is eligible to be purchased by either Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac.

In its latest effort to reach first time home buyers, Freddie Mac is launching a new 3% down payment program that casts aside a number of restrictions in its existing low down payment offerings.

MountainView is brokering a nonrecourse $3.5 billion package of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac mortgage servicing rights on behalf of an unnamed seller.

Home values grew during 2017 at their fastest pace in four years and the same supply and demand dynamics behind that increase remain in place for 2018.

Regulatory changes that would put an end to state and local tax deductions could prompt many homeowners in high-tax states to consider relocating, a Redfin survey shows.

As housing demand continues to challenge low levels of supply, home prices are overvalued in 34% of the largest U.S. metropolitan areas, according to CoreLogic.

Canadian officials are working to slow a rapid rise in home prices that's being attributed to tight inventory levels in the country's largest cities and is threatening to create a housing bubble.