Housing markets

Freddie Mac is now forecasting back-to-back years of $2 trillion in mortgage loan originations rather than a drop-off in 2020.

As lawmakers tackle Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, any revamp must lessen risk to the mortgage system and U.S. taxpayers.

The end of the qualified mortgage patch should further accelerate non-QM origination growth, but is the mortgage industry ready?

With the qualified mortgage patch expiring and a recession likely, wealth inequities that have hurt black and millennial homeownership could worsen, according to the National Association of Real Estate Brokers.

Property values recovered, and in some cases even surpassed housing bubble peaks, but the same can't be said for waning new construction activity, which won't return to historic norms for years, according to Zillow.

A swell of refinance demand amid a low mortgage rate environment pushed lender profit margin outlooks to the highest level since the first quarter of 2015, according to Fannie Mae.

JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon said at an investor conference that the Trump administration's plan for Fannie and Freddie would provide more opportunities for financial institutions. He also called for an end to the U.S.-China trade war and weighed in on the prospect of interest rates falling to zero.

Mortgage debt climbed to a new peak of $9.4 trillion in the second quarter and the distribution across the U.S. varies greatly.

Refinances jumped in July in response to a considerable mortgage rate decline from the month prior as homeowners set to lock in lower costs, according to Ellie Mae.

Complaints made by legacy shareholders of Freddie Mac have no value after the Treasury Department pumped up Freddie and Fannie Mae through conservatorship.

While talks of an impending recession pick up steam, the housing market remains fairly stalwart and won't be to blame this time around, according to Zillow.

Lower rates will likely sustain higher levels of origination through at least the third quarter, but supply constraints and economic weakness could limit the purchase market's response in the long term.

Mortgage activity fell at the start of the year, but lower mortgage rates are boosting refinance volume, and Generation Z is starting to creep into the housing market, according to TransUnion.

Behind strong job markets, the shortage in housing supply and more millennials moving out, 2019 projects to be a record year for multifamily originations.

Fannie Mae increased its mortgage origination forecast as lower interest rates, driven by economic uncertainty, will lead to more refinance activity, but other factors will continue to hold back home purchases.

Builder MDC Holdings' preliminary numbers for net new home orders registered their highest quarterly increase in years, adding to signs of growing demand for housing.

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.

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.

Freddie Mac is now offering to buy a new form of manufactured housing loan with terms similar to that of conventional mortgages from all eligible lenders, following a test run last year.

Commercial and multifamily mortgage debt outstanding grew 6.8% in 2018, benefiting from strong employment numbers and strained inventory, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.