As hope for a recovery drawing nearer helps push rates higher, Carol K. writes, “I hate it when people ask me what I do for fun because there is no classy way to say, ‘Binge drink.’” The approaching 1003 form mandatory changes may cause some people to turn to drink… Is it going to “March Madness” at your shop with the new URLA? (The commentary has plenty of URLA and processing notes below.) Plenty of lenders who are “farther along technology curves” than others seem to be hiring lots of developers to accommodate change like incorporating a new application. But AEs and MLOs need to be aware of and use digital tools that they already have. DU and LP, for example, are great tools and in nearly every lender. Heck, I hear a lot about senior management reminding staff about the benefits of correctly filling out forms: it is important but overlooked. I’ve started telling everyone about the benefits of eating dried grapes. It’s all about raisin awareness! (To listen to the audio version of today’s commentary, please click here.)

Employment, hiring, and promotions

“Are you looking to join a fast-growing financial firm that is making a positive impact on the lives of millions of homeowners? Do you want to work with a diverse and dynamic group of individuals while taking home a highly competitive salary? (Oh, and did we mention all from the comfort of your home?) Great news: Lakeview Loan Servicing, the largest Ginnie Mae servicer and fourth largest servicer in the country, is hiring. Competitive compensation, signing bonuses, and benefits starting day one of employment are just a few of the many outstanding perks of joining the Lakeview team. (Read our employee testimonials here!) Even better, you’ll have the opportunity to make a direct and positive impact on more than 1.8 million customers across the country. Open positions include Underwriters, Processors, Closers, and Wholesale AEs in all regions. Head to our career page and read more about our openings, benefits, and company culture. We can’t wait to meet you!”

“First Option Mortgage, a national residential mortgage lender is pleased to announce the newest member of our team, ARLA., an Automated Response Loan Assistant built into FOM’s new website. Alvin Shah, managing partner at First Option stated “ARLA will assist new customers in their mortgage journey, while also helping existing customers connect with their loan officer. ARLA’s email to the loan officer will alert them of their customer’s request. This ensures greater engagement between the loan officer and the consumer.” With the new website, adding AI technology was the logical way to go. But FOM wanted to go beyond the normal Q&A that bots are limited to. National Sales Manager Fobby Naghmi said “ARLA will become an integral part of providing a higher level of service to not only the FOM clients, but to the FOM employees in multiple areas.” To discover more about First Option Mortgage, contact Fobby.”

“Caliber Home Loans is proud to employ a diverse group of VA-certified loan consultants and serve a broad military community. Bryan Bergjans, SVP, National Director of Military & Veteran Lending, was the featured guest of an important virtual webinar. “Ask the Expert: Lending to the Military and Veteran Community,” focused on a variety of subjects about the VA loan industry. One important topic was building trust within the military and veteran community. Bergjans noted that authenticity was key in developing strong relationships with military service members. That means hiring more retired military and military spouses who understand what it’s like transitioning back into civilian life. Along with educating the community on facts and details involving the VA loan process, these actions are imperative in sustaining a quality relationship with the community. Explore our redesigned military website and to be immediately considered for Operations or Sales positions, email Jonathan Stanley or Brian Miller.”

Seroka, a brand development, digital and strategic communications agency, announced that John Seroka has been elected to the role of President.

Credit Plus, a leading provider of credit data and verification services, announced the executive promotions of Mike Hall to Chief Operating Officer, Don Clement to EVP, Marketing, Michael Crockett to EVP, Data Solutions, Judy Ryan to EVP, Sales, East, and Mike Allen to EVP, Sales, West.

Mortgage Connect LP has appointed Capital Markets veteran Brian Frye to the role of EVP, Servicing and Capital Markets Strategy. Brian’s headed up its Capital Markets division which provides title, collateral, and transaction support services that cater to the demanding needs of institutional investors, banks, and GSEs that trade and securitize whole loans in the secondary market.

Quontic, the adaptive digital bank, has hired Craig Schimelman as VP, National Wholesale Sales Manager to lead the wholesale mortgage division to grow the Non-QM market. Quontic’s wholesale mortgage funding has increased 600% since September 2020. Craig will also be responsible for hiring Regional Sales Managers and Wholesale AEs to drive the Non-QM market.

Lender services and products

I continue to hear how much of a pain employment and income verifications are becoming for lenders as they try to accelerate closings. That’s why Truework has become such a savior for so many of you. Truework automates income and employment verifications for loans, shortening time to close. I hear more and more lending teams using Truework in their verification work streams and I get it- it’s absurdly efficient and more cost-effective with higher volumes- especially now that their coverage has grown to over 35 million employees. Truework should be a go-to tool for any loan processor out there as verifications are ridiculously fast and Truework’s level of service is a breath of fresh air: the team actually cares about helping you close more business. Imagine that. Get started on Truework today. VOE/VOI done fast and accurate.

“Propelling from our annual Kick Off meeting (virtual this year), the Mr. Cooper Correspondent team is more energized than ever! The meeting theme “Know to Grow” illustrates our goals for 2021. Focused on mutual growth and partnership with our clients, we’re determined to Know Our Clients better than ever! We’re dedicated to making sure our clients Know Our Business and Solutions – Delegated, Non-Delegated, proven Operational Excellence, Flexible Delivery Options (Mandatory, Bulk, Best Efforts, Hybrid AOT, & More!), Co-issue, and Capital Markets Solutions. Through dedicated relationships, we’ll ensure the industry and our business partners Know Mr. Cooper fully to understand our expertise and how to leverage the value of working with Mr. Cooper, a Top 10 Correspondent investor and premier leader in the Co-issue space. Through this awareness, our clients will GROW and Mr. Cooper will GROW! If YOU want to KNOW more and are ready to GROW, please reach out to your Regional Sales team!”

The demand for high quality, experienced processing and underwriting talent has exploded in the past year, leaving lenders struggling to recruit and competing with a new high mark for salaries. Luckily for community lenders, high quality onshore outsourced processing and underwriting services (like Maxwell’s Fulfillment Platform) are accessible like never before. The Maxwell Fulfillment Platform enables lenders to scale their business with access to tech-empowered teams of experienced onshore processors and underwriters at offshore prices. The result is lending teams that are able to grow beyond the talent restrictions of their local markets. To learn more about the Maxwell Fulfillment Platform, schedule a call today or click here to see how this service can meet your underwriting and processing needs.

Are you experiencing prolonged payroll cycles and commission calculation errors? Are your incentive compensation plans multiplying like rabbits? If the tried-and-true spreadsheet system that worked for years has begun to hold you back, you’re not alone. These were the exact pain points Silverton Mortgage experienced before making the switch to CompenSafe by LBA Ware. Download this case study to see what makes CompenSafe the most efficient and modern way to manage incentive compensation.

Does your year ahead look like Easy Street or Nightmare on Elm Street? Now that the forbearance moratorium has been extended, the risk of a default wave is heightened. Borrowers who need the extension are likely facing an uphill financial challenge and servicers unprepared to manage delinquent portfolios could be at risk once the moratorium ends. Computershare Loan Services (CLS) is a leading servicer with predictive analytics and borrower engagement solutions that help clients get ahead of default loan scenarios. CLS’ deep roots in default servicing support both clients and homeowners, at every step of the loan lifecycle. Prepare for the road ahead. Have a conversation with CLS about your servicing portfolio and how to best manage your EBOs, delinquencies, and defaults.

Stewart Title has continued to invest in innovative technology and scale through its acquisition of Pro Teck Valuation Intelligence. Pro Teck’s VALIDITY guided homeowner inspection app, originally developed to allow safe inspections during the health crisis, can provide faster turn times and a more in-depth inspection for products that typically rely on exterior Property Condition Reports. Contact us to learn about pairing a VALIDITY inspection with Pro Teck’s ValueFocus, CollateralPoint, Evaluation, or Desktop Appraisal for your home equity, servicing, or capital markets needs. Pair it with our automatic Product Selection Waterfall based on your risk criteria to match the most efficient product for your need.

Has your volume reached a point where it is time to make the move from best efforts to mandatory loan sales? Maybe you’ve already moved to mandatory and are looking for even more pickup and ways to mitigate risk? Join MCT®’s Moving to Mandatory Loan Sale Delivery webinar on March 10^th at 10AM PT to learn how mandatory loan sales is helping lenders improve profitability while reducing risk. The webinar will also review current market trends and operational changes needed to make the switch to mandatory loan sales. As the industry leader in pull-through analytics and best execution with the highest staff-to-client ratio, lenders of every size trust MCT to manage risk and optimize profitability in their mortgage pipeline. To learn how MCT is helping clients of every size achieve their goals, try MCT’s new mortgage profitability calculator.

Big news out of FormFree: the company announced its expanded AccountChek 3n1’s VOIE network to cover more than 100 million working Americans. By partnering with 31 of the nation’s top payroll providers, FormFree can electronically verify income and employment via direct-source paystub data for 85% of Americans paid via payroll service. Guild Mortgage’s David Battany and Roostify’s Rajesh Bhat heralded the announcement as a welcome answer to the industry’s desire for more expansive VOIE coverage at a fair price point. If you’re one of the 3,000 lenders in the FormFree network, contact Gregg Palmer to get 3n1 turned on today.

Technology and processing changes

While COVID devastated many industries, it had the opposite effect on ours. Lenders have ramped up with more people and pushed harder on technology, buying and installing at a maddening pace. Even though technology deployment is up, according to a new article by STRATMOR Senior Partner Garth Graham adoption by users has not kept pace. “Only about half of the eligible users, internal and consumer, are adopting the tools they are provided,” says Graham. “My message to lenders and vendors? You can roll out new tools, but you have to drive adoption of those tools to have the digital technology success you want.” In his article in the February Insights Report, “Digital Rising: The Mortgage World According to Garth,” Graham draws on data from STRATMOR’s 2020 Technology Insight^® Study and other STRATMOR data sources to show the adoption gap in the industry’s digital journey. Don’t miss the new issue of STRATMOR’s Insights Report.

FAMC revised the system implementation date communicated in Correspondent National Bulletin 2021-05. FAMC’s system began accepting the redesigned URLA this week for all products.

First State Mortgage sent out a URLA reminder.

Effective March 1, PRMG’s TPO Portal will support and require the MISMO file format 3.4 version to accommodate the newly designed URLA and updated AUS systems.

Flagstar Bank posted information on VVOE Form Update and COVID Reminder for Self-Employed Borrowers in memo 21023.

In Compliance News, First American Docutech posted information regarding FNMA AUS messages Concerning Legacy URLA and USDA Forms Updates.

Wells Fargo Funding clarified that Sellers submitting Loans using the new Uniform Residential Loan Application (URLA) during the Open Production Period are not required to include taxpayer consent documentation in the closed Loan Package. The redesigned URLA includes language that meets Wells Fargo Funding’s taxpayer consent documentation requirement for all Loan types (conventional Conforming, Non-Conforming, FHA, VA, and Guaranteed Rural Housing).

Flagstar Bank posted Memo 21012 on February 4^th with updated information on 4506-C Authorization.

FCM Wholesale posted a 4506-C guideline update in Announcement 2021-3.

Capital markets

Join MIAC on Thursday, March 4 at 2:00 PM EST for its latest webinar: Whole Loan Market Update. MIAC’s Whole Loan Trading Desk will recount the events of 2020 and their effects on the residential whole loan market. Topics include ways to capitalize on the turmoil in the residential market and how to protect against future economic events while taking advantage of new opportunities in 2021. This webinar will feature presentations and discussions by MIAC’s experts: Brendan Teeley, Senior Vice President, Whole Loan Sales & Trading, and Dick Kazarian, Managing Director, Borrower Analytics Group. Hosted by MIAC Analytics. Webinar registration is complimentary: reserve your spot today!

The bond market, trading in part off of actual data and part off of hope, has been selling off, and selling off some more, recently. Yesterday’s likely culprit was likely the headline that the FDA has endorsed Johnson & Johnson’s single-shot vaccine. Some of the selloff could have been due to new home sales in January increasing 4.3 percent month-over-month and 19.3 percent year-over-year, both above expectations, to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 923k. Demand for signed contracts remains robust despite higher prices. It certainly wasn’t due to the greatest weekly decline in mortgage applications in nearly a year. If mortgage rates continue to creep up, we will see continued pressure on TBA and pool volumes that are coming off record levels.

In Washington, Fed Chairman Powell delivered an uneventful appearance to conclude his semiannual testimony on monetary policy before the House Financial Services Committee. I’ll spare you the details and say the Fed is unlikely to change course for some time, but will do its best to alert us of any changes as far in advance as possible. The day’s $61 billion 5-year note auction was met with weak demand. By the end of the day Treasury yields had pulled back a couple bps across the curve and the MBS basis closed the volatile session mixed.

Today’s economic calendar is out of the gate with a bang. January Durable Goods Orders (+3.4 percent, much stronger than forecast), the second look at Q4 GDP (+4.1 percent) and weekly jobless claims (730k, -111k from the previous week but are impacted by the storms; continuing claims 4.2 million). Later this morning brings January Pending Home Sales, the Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey for the week ending February 25, KC Fed manufacturing for February and a $62 billion Treasury auction of 7-year notes. Three Fed speakers are on the docket: Atlanta’s Bostic, Vice Chair of Supervision Quarles, and New York’s Williams. Today’s schedule sees the NY Fed Desk conducting three operations, one in each class, for up to $6.6 billion, in what we’re reminded is “artificial” demand. We begin the day with Agency MBS prices worse/down .5-.750 and the 10-year yielding 1.46 after closing yesterday at 1.39 percent on continued hope for the pandemic recovery.

During the beginning of the pandemic I worked at a cheap pizza shop to get by. I kneaded the dough.

Visit www.robchrisman.com for more information on our industry partners, access archived commentaries, or to subscribe to the Daily Mortgage News and Commentary. If you’re interested, visit my periodic blog at the STRATMOR Group web site. The current blog is, “Servicing: A Valuable Asset”. The Commentary’s podcast is live and at any place you obtain your podcasts (like Apple or Spotify).

qoɹ

(Market data provided in partnership with MBS Live. For free job postings and to view candidate resumes visit LenderNews. This newsletter is designed for sophisticated mortgage professionals only. There are no paid endorsements by me. For up-to-date mortgage news visit Mortgage News Daily. For archived commentaries, or to subscribe, go to www.robchrisman.com. Copyright 2021 Chrisman LLC. All rights reserved. Occasional paid job & product listings do appear. This report or any portion hereof may not be reprinted, sold, or redistributed without the written consent of Rob Chrisman.)

Source: Rob Chrisman

(To listen to the audio version of today’s commentary with an interview with industry vet Joe Garrett, please click here.) There’s a cost to staying at home as much as we do. I went to the doctor the other day. She told me, “I’ve got good news and bad news. The good news is that your weight is perfect. The bad news is that you’re two feet too short.” What is the cost of you keeping a customer versus the cost of finding a new one? According to STRATMOR data, the average time to close a refinance loan is currently around 60 days, with many lenders (depository institutions in particular) experiencing cycle times in the 90 to 110-day range. How are originators supposed to delight borrowers when cycle times are out of control? It starts with setting the right expectations. Data from MortgageSAT, the Borrower Satisfaction Program with more than 260,000 borrower respondents in 2020, shows that one in five loans in Q4 failed to close within the expected time frame set by the lender, costing 57 points on the Net Promoter Score (NPS) – from 87 to 30. MortgageSAT Director Mike Seminari offers three suggestions to help set appropriate borrower expectations and mitigate long cycle times in his February MortgageSAT Tip.

Employment & transitions

“Track record of long employee tenure = Assurance Financial. Best tech stack in the mortgage marketplace = Assurance Financial. Exemplary record of servicing purchase money market MLOs = Assurance Financial. Incredible entrepreneurial branch manager business model = Assurance Financial. Community-service oriented in all markets with St. Jude as our philanthropy partner = Assurance Financial. Founded in 2001, licensed in 43 states, all agency approvals, not controlled by private equity, and growing in all markets. If you are an aggressive producing branch manager or senior mortgage loan officer considering another opportunity, contact Paul Peters, CMB to discuss a mutual opportunity or visit AssuranceMortgageLO.com to learn more!”

FHLBank San Francisco announced its new leader: Teresa Bazemore. Teresa is its new President and CEO (starting in mid-March), after a lengthy and storied career at places like Prudential, Radian Guarantee, NationsBank, and Nextstar. She joins the long and growing list of people in our industry that announce retiring but then don’t. (Insert smiley face here.)

NewRez LLC announced that Michael Iorio has joined the Company as Senior Division Manager within the Joint Venture lending division.

Justin Demola, CMB is the new president of Lenders One, replacing Brian Simon, CMB, who resigned from his role as President of Lenders One to take on an executive role with a bank.

Lender, correspondent, & broker services and products

March is almost here, which means the deluge of mortgages and refis will only increase, forcing lenders like yourself to leave valuable loans on the table. Here’s the good news; Truework empowers you to verify anyone’s income or employment information quickly, accurately, and cost-effectively. With our tech-forward, fast verification platform and instantly verifiable network of 35 million employees (and growing), we are committed to tackling and completing any and all VOE/VOI requests. Additionally, we lead the industry in coverage for small and mid-sized companies, so you can verify hard-to-get employees, instantly. Get started on Truework today. And for a limited time, Rob Chrisman readers get 6 free Verifications ($240 value). Let us do the heavy lifting so you can focus on what matters. Set up time with Zackary Green now for questions and to claim this offer.

How do you keep overall customer satisfaction rates at 98% during the toughest year in a century? With a happy team doubling down on core values. It’s what helped TMS earn a record NPS score and positioned them for a great 2021. Read the TMS blog to see how it plans to have the same success in 2021 by staying committed to their people. Partner with TMS today.

MLOs, are you tired of working in your files and know you need to reconnect with referral partners? Are you ready to take control of your mortgage business so it doesn’t control you? When you coach with me, your business isn’t the only thing that expands: your life does too. Learn more about how I can help you take your business to the next level of success. Schedule your complimentary coaching strategy call or email us. “I’m excited to share my expertise in building high impact teams and mastering relationship strategies to expand your referral partner network so you can succeed in any market. Learn the key strategies and tactics that I used to achieve 7-figure success in my mortgage business, get your systems in place and learn to focus on the key activities that will drive your results!”

“Homeownership has long been a cornerstone of the American dream and the Correspondent Division of Citibank N.A. is dedicated to helping homeowners in underserved markets realize this dream. We are pleased to announce that Citi is the first mortgage investor to leverage ICE Mortgage Technology’s newest feature within the Encompass Product & Pricing Service™ (EPPS) that allows originators to drive Community Reinvestment (CRA) pricing incentives to the consumer at point of sale. EPPS is the mortgage industry’s only pricing engine to support CRA lending for participating mortgage investors, and those lenders doing business in underserved areas. This feature is now available to sellers and is the first of many new products and services the Citi team will debut in 2021. Learn how to be a part of this exciting growth with Citi by contacting our National Client Services Team today at 800-967-2205 or complete the Prospective Seller Questionnaire.”

Re: Ultra-Efficient Loan Pipelines… What would the impact of 1.5x, 2x or 4x efficiency be for your operations? This division of American Pacific Mortgage knows. They made their loan pipelines four-times (4x) more efficient with TeamworkIQ’s remarkably smart task-based workflows. Head of Operations, Indica Weatherwax, said, “Not only are we processing four-times the loan files every day compared to before, but we also now sleep better at night knowing that nothing can fall through the cracks.” TeamworkIQ streamlines loan pipelines by intelligently coordinating and prioritizing actions for mortgage teams. It tracks every detail, deadline, and document for every loan and can communicate with your POS+CRM+LOS. Without smarter tools teams can spend up to 75% of their workday tracking down information and figuring out what to do next. Combine that with high loan volumes and inevitably something gets missed. Eliminate wasted time. Detect issues before they become costly mistakes. Get efficient. Get TeamworkIQ.

It’s been almost a year since the world became enamored with Netflix’s “Tiger King” series and Carol Baskin became a household name. “Tiger King’s” popularity led it to overshadow another intriguing docuseries released around the same time, “McMillions.” Luckily, lenders who team up with Sales Boomerang, the #1 automated borrower intelligence and retention platform, don’t have to resort to con artistry to cash in on their own McMillions. “In the first 4 months we took in $180M in applications and we have about 100 LOs. That is a significant impact to our business,” says Katherine Campbell, Assurance Financial. Sales Boomerang notifies mortgage lenders the moment someone in their database is ready for a loan. Lenders using Sales Boomerang see an average 20-40% lift to loan volume and 65% borrower retention rate for around $299 per acquired loan — a 20x ROI. Claim your own McMillions with Sales Boomerang.

The upcoming ACES QC Now webinar series will feature industry expert Steve Spies on Wednesday, March 3, 2021 at 2:00 PM EST. Reserve your seat! The Antidote for Audit Anxiety: Expert Advice on How to Prepare for a Regulatory Exam. The 30-minute webinar will cover common audit challenges, regulator audit scope deep dive, how to best prepare for an audit, current regulator focus, eliminating the stress with automating QC, and reporting on actionable data.

“Stearns Wholesale recognizes the importance of an efficient, customized experience to serve more borrowers effectively and keep your referral partners satisfied with our Accelerator Program. In a recent release, Stearns Wholesale has reduced the minimum credit score from 700 to 620 on all Accelerator transactions up to 90% LTV. Streamlining the process and improving the price on popular scenarios with the same best-in-class fulfillment was the driving force behind this development. Better value, faster, sustainable. If you want to learn more about this exciting new update or partner with Stearns, click here to be contacted.”

With critical decisions at stake, capital markets professionals need the most robust data and modern technology to support their analyses. Black Knight provides proven, cutting-edge solutions to help optimize decisions. Developed specifically for users working with housing-related assets, our Rapid Analytics Platform℠ (RAP℠), for example, offers a unique, cloud-based data marketplace and decision-science studio. With RAP, you can immediately source Black Knight’s diverse, comprehensive data assets as well as add your own, and execute queries, create advanced analytics, and train machine-learning models. Our long-standing, trading-quality AFT℠ Prepayment and Credit Model leverages innovative modeling techniques and dynamic data collected directly from the source to quickly adapt to market shifts. And, our servicer-contributed McDash℠ data provides the most comprehensive loan-level data in any single source, with the option for daily delinquency, forbearance and payment data. Learn more how these and our other solutions can help you.

Are you looking to close more loans, faster? Capacity allows you to take care of your borrowers with superior customer experience and 24/7 automated support, all through a mobile-friendly chat interface. Capacity correctly and instantly answers more than 84% of all prospective and current borrower questions without any human intervention. Top lenders like AmeriSave, APM, and PRMG turn to Capacity to effortlessly tap into key systems throughout the entire loan life cycle. Want to hear more? Capacity makes scaling an organization easy by simplifying tasks in the UW Scenario Desk, Lock Desk, and Encompass Support Desk. Capacity reduces the level of human interaction required to answer expense and HR questions and to complete tasks for compliance requirements and document processing. Bottom line, Capacity allows you to take care of borrowers with superior customer experience and 24/7 automated support. Deploy within 30 days. Request a demo.

“Lakeview Loan Servicing is pleased to announce that as of February 1, 2021, we are the proud Master Servicer for the South Carolina State Housing Finance and Development Authority (SC Housing) Palmetto Home Advantage program. A self-sustaining agency, SC Housing is committed to ensuring that residents have the opportunity to live in safe and affordable housing. Designed to serve both first-time and move-up borrowers, the Palmetto Home Advantage program offers down payment and closing cost assistance for both conventional and government loans. Become an approved participating lender today. Visit SC Housing for more information.”

Training, events, & membership opportunities to wrap up February

19 for 12 is back! The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) is running a special for the month of March. New members that join now can take advantage of 19 months of MBA membership for the price of 12 (7 months free!). MBA membership grants access to committees, information, education, research, and so much more. Membership also supports MBA’s highly successful legislative and regulatory advocacy programs. In 2020, MBA’s advocacy efforts secured numerous significant victories that helped members manage through COVID and address regulatory uncertainties: see for yourself. In 2021, MBA is already hard at work at both the state and federal level to defend and support the mortgage banking industry. For example, look at its campaign to secure greater flexibility for remote work options for MLOs and others engaged in licensed activities. This is just one example of their ongoing advocacy efforts. To learn more, contact Tricia Migliazzo, VP of Member Engagement (202-557-2858).

Attend a complimentary webinar for mortgage professionals today at 10AM PT: The State of the Economy & Key Strategies to Secure Your Investments and Build Wealth. Hosted by Cindy Ertman, CEO of The Defining Difference, with guest experts. Topics include the state of the economy, the future of interest rates, the health of the housing industry, and discuss key investment strategies for what you should be doing with your money and how to protect it.

October Research is bringing together three experienced experts to share their insights in the upcoming Getting to Know Your Regulators webinar today. Former CFPB Deputy Director and Alston & Bird Partner Brian Johnson, former CFPB Assistant Director of Enforcement and Goodwin Partner Tony Alexis and former Principal Deputy Enforcement Director and General Counsel for the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation Hunter Wiggins.

Candor and HW offer this moderated discussion with AFN, APM, and loanDepot tomorrow at 1PM CT which should shed more light on how Candor is providing a processing lift to lenders around the nation.

Here’s a free CFPB FinEx Webinar: CFPB resources for working with servicemembers and veterans on Thursday, February 25, from 2:00-3:00 pm ET. Join the webinar for an introduction to education and empowerment materials from CFPB’s Office of Servicemember Affairs. To view the presentation slides please join the event directly here. Event number: 199 082 2346.

The next California MBA Mortgage Quality & Compliance Committee (MQAC) webinar (sponsored by The Compliance Group) will answer question on social media compliance by covering one of the most timely topics for compliance/QA teams: social media compliance! Join on February 25^th at 11 am (PST) with Philip Yee, SVP, Chief Marketing Officer at Plaza Home Mortgage and Mike Zastoupil, Sales Solutions Specialist at Black Knight.

Partners Credit is sponsoring this Friday’s edition of The Mortgage Collaborative’s Rundown, and Tracey King will be co-hosting! Tracey, Rich Swerbinsky, the COO of The Mortgage Collaborative, and I will be discussing current events in the mortgage market for 30 minutes on Friday the 26th at 3PM ET in, “The Rundown with Rob and Rich.”

MBA Education continues to deliver webinars, complimentary to MBA members, like Commercial/Multifamily: Market Distress and Loan Workouts – February 24, Compliance in a Rapidly Changing Servicing Environment – February 24, MAA Quarterly Webinar: February 2021 – February 25, Achieving Touchless Mortgage Automation: Insights from Industry Experts – March 3, and Multifamily Real Estate Financial Crimes Training – March 10.

Capital markets

While the global “reflation trade” (with bonds selling off and commodities rising) has been the norm lately, U.S. Treasuries ended yesterday on a mixed note after a volatile start. Money flowed out of equities to start the day, but we then saw the release of a better-than-expected Consumer Confidence report for February, where attitudes about current conditions improved for the first time in four months, aided by some improvement in the view of the labor market. The release of Fed Chairman Powell’s prepared remarks that were delivered to the Senate Banking Committee reiterated that any changes to the Fed’s bond buying plans will be communicated well in advance, which provided welcomed certainty for investors. The day’s $60 billion 2-year note auction was met with soft demand ahead of today’s $61 billion 5-year note sale. The FHFA Housing Price Index increased by 1.1 percent month-over-month in December after increasing 1.0 percent in November, while the S&P Case-Shiller Home Price Index rose 10.1 percent year-over-year in December, more than expected. Housing is strong!

Today sees Fed Chair Powell back on The Hill to testify on the monetary policy report before the House Financial Services Committee. Two other Fed speakers (Governor Brainard and Vice Chair Clarida) are scheduled to make appearances elsewhere. On the data front, we’ve seen that mortgage applications decreased 11.4 percent from one week earlier, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending February 19. Later this morning brings new home sales for January and that $61 billion 5-yr Treasury note auction. Today’s MBS purchase schedule by the Fed is the largest of the week with the Desk scheduled to purchase $7.6 billion over three operations, including over $6.2 billion in UMBS30s. We begin the day with Agency MBS prices down/worse .250 and the 10-year yielding 1.38 after closing yesterday at 1.36 percent.

For some Hump Day R&R, thank you to Carey A. who asks, “Can you guess the city from a virtual walk around the streets?” (Hint: start easy, like in the United States.)

Visit www.robchrisman.com for more information on our industry partners, access archived commentaries, or to subscribe to the Daily Mortgage News and Commentary. If you’re interested, visit my periodic blog at the STRATMOR Group web site. The current blog is, “Servicing: A Valuable Asset”. The Commentary’s podcast is live and at any place you obtain your podcasts (like Apple or Spotify).

qoɹ

(Market data provided in partnership with MBS Live. For free job postings and to view candidate resumes visit LenderNews. This newsletter is designed for sophisticated mortgage professionals only. There are no paid endorsements by me. For up-to-date mortgage news visit Mortgage News Daily. For archived commentaries, or to subscribe, go to www.robchrisman.com. Copyright 2021 Chrisman LLC. All rights reserved. Occasional paid job & product listings do appear. This report or any portion hereof may not be reprinted, sold, or redistributed without the written consent of Rob Chrisman.)

 

Source: Rob Chrisman

(To listen to the audio version of today’s commentary, please click here.) Being home schooled was the goodest thing I ever did! Disparities in mortgage approval rates and higher student loan debt are contributing to a significant gap between Black and White home owners, according to the National Association of Realtors. Many ask, “How about lowering the cost of higher education rather than forgiving debt?” Others ask, “If you can’t trust a company named Libre with immigration detention at the Mexico/United States border, who can you trust?” The CFPB alleges Libre scammed those held in custody. Speaking of… Want to make a quarter million a year working for the CFPB? Here’s your chance. (Signing bonus availability unknown.) There is a lot of conjecture about the CFPB bearing its fangs, but if lenders and servicers are adhering to rules and regulations, is there anything to fear? (By the way, apologies to those of you who were unable to listen to yesterday’s podcast, including an interview with BJ Necel, due to some issues with hosting provider now resolved.)

Employment

“If 2020’s record volumes left you feeling burnt out, it’s time to invest in yourself. Mid America Mortgage is hiring for both sales and operations, including Loan Officers, Branch Managers, Processors, Branch Support, Underwriters, Closers, and other corporate operational support roles. As a nationwide mortgage lender, Mid America is open to growth in any and all domestic geographic territories. We believe that work-life balance is important to the sustainability of long-term employees, and that mentality does not change based on demand. Our culture of putting employees first has earned us numerous Top Workplace honors, and by equipping our teams with best-in-class technology and support, Mid America ensures our employees are able to maximize their efficiency without burning the midnight oil. If you’re ready to make a change, Mid America is ready for you. Visit our Careers page, and contact Mid America’s HR Director Pacia Crawford to learn more.”

A deep-rooted, privately held mortgage lender, MiMutual Mortgage invites ambitious mortgage professionals seeking new opportunities to explore the positions currently available within its Sales and Operations teams. MiMutual is excited to continue the expansion of its well-established Wholesale Sales Team nationwide, seeking experienced Account Executives across the country. Within Operations, MiMutual is offering remote opportunities within Underwriting and Closing, specifically in search of an Underwriting Supervisor, FHA/VA certified Underwriters, and Sr. Closers. All interested candidates are encouraged to contact HR Generalist Karley Warwick (248-286-9490) for more information.

Lender products & services

The 2021 housing market is changing: Are you investing in the right areas for a profitable year? Lenders: Now is the time to reevaluate your strategy and spend as the lending cycle shifts, and we head into a purchase-heavy market. Luckily, leading digital mortgage platform Maxwell has pulled together market predictions and expert opinion to give you the top 6 business areas likely to produce outsized ROI this year. If you want to capitalize on opportunities available to lenders in the coming months, then consider making these timely investments in your company: You’ll thank yourself later. Click here to download Maxwell’s free new ebook Top 6 Areas Where Lenders Should Invest in 2021.

So, Candor came out of nowhere?!? The website says Candor’s machine has underwritten more than 305,000 loans. A little detective work unveiled this HW article and this moderated discussion with AFN, APM, and loanDepot on Thursday which should shed more light on how Candor is providing such lift. Be there this Thursday, February 25th, at 1PM CT.

According to Inside Mortgage Finance, PennyMac was the nation’s fastest-growing wholesale lender in 2020. Talk about an impressive accomplishment: 485% growth from 2019 to 2020. How’d PennyMac do it? Since entering wholesale in 2018, PennyMac has had an unwavering commitment to the broker channel. Whether it’s condition accuracy, clean approvals, consistent underwriting or turn times, the focus is on service and on getting broker partners and their borrowers to the closing table as quickly and easily as possible. PennyMac’s experienced team strives to provide the highest level of engagement on every loan for every broker, every day. PennyMac is positioned to be an even greater lending partner in 2021. The timing couldn’t be better to check out all the reasons to become a broker partner or a Non-delegated Correspondent seller and grow at the speed of PennyMac.

Easily find your next vendor on Vendor Surf, showcasing the most innovative solutions and recognized brands, SEARCHERS can ‘Find ’em Fast,’ in real-time via specific filters… Nothing else like it. Not another static ‘directory.’ A quarter million page views, with over half of our traffic coming from Google. Even they recognize us as the ‘Vendor Authority.’ The premier destination for decision makers at lenders and credit unions, intelligently connecting to desired vendor partners. There’s more! See the industry’s most complete Calendar of events, webinars, podcasts, and training, usually over 300 items. We post yours for FREE. Send them to Scott.

Synergy One Lending, home of The Modern Mortgage Experience™, in its latest webinar series, THE SHIFT, presents “Winning Big with FinTech” on March 3rd at 11am PST with Henry Cason, one of the foremost authorities on the digital mortgage landscape, former head of digital strategy at Fannie Mae and the Creator of Fannie Mae’s Day 1 Certainty Program. Cason, now CEO at FinLocker, addresses how fintech allows lenders to venture well beyond the mortgage transaction to meet the paradigm shift happening in consumer finance. Learn how top producers are positioning themselves with technology as they build highly engaged customers for life, especially in the Gen Z and Millennial segments. Click here to secure your spot today! Synergy One Lending is based in San Diego, CA, with Operational HUBS in Roseville, Boise, Denver, and Dallas. Contact Aaron Nemec or Ben Green to learn more about S1L.

Northpointe Bank Correspondent Lending recently launched its Streamline Jumbo Fixed & ARM program, with loan amounts up to $3,000,000, loan-to-value up to 85% and no mortgage insurance requirements. The Streamline Jumbo program includes cash out refinances with LTVs up to 80%; closely follows automated underwriting guidelines; and is available for owner occupied, second homes, and nonowner-occupied properties. Approved Northpointe Bank clients have access to best effort and mandatory delivery options, third-party origination and the program is eligible in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Northpointe Bank provides tailored solutions to maximize your profitably and help grow your business. View program details for more information or email [email protected].

Don’t let the monthly extension of forbearance deadlines and foreclosure moratoriums create complacency! Find out what loss mitigation capabilities your servicing operations should have to meet the next phase of COVID-19 relief and workout alternatives in CLARIFIRE’s latest blog. Are your systems and personnel in a pandemic lull? From extended flexibilities and evolving regulation to nuanced default guidance, CLARIFIRE^® is the premier process automation application designed to transcend the lull and tackle the chaos that began with the financial crisis, percolated during historic natural disaster levels, and is turning us upside down in the midst of a pandemic. We are ready to help you navigate what’s next in loss mitigation. Let us show you how you can future proof your organization today with CLARIFIRE^®, truly BRIGHTER AUTOMATION^®.

What makes one bulk program different, or better, than another… Besides the bids? At Plaza Home Mortgage, the answer is: competitive bids + insurance to protect correspondents against buybacks. Correspondents selling to Plaza’s National Correspondent Program are automatically covered by Plaza’s unique Certified Loan Program, which protects sellers against a range of underwriting defects, even COVID-19 related instances.  Looking for more from a correspondent lender? Look to Plaza National Correspondent at [email protected].

The goal: customer satisfaction

STRATMOR Group congratulates the winners of the MortgageSAT Borrowers Satisfaction Program’s 2020 Best-in-Class Lender Awards! The awards are presented annually and go to the top performing lenders by segment and in 10 performance categories including Overall Borrower Satisfaction, Net Promoter Score, Loan Officer, Loan Processor, Application Process, Products and Costs, Likelihood to Use Again and Online Tools. Winners this year include: Rocket Pro TPO, Residential Mortgage Services, Certainty Home Loans, Meridian Bank, Accunet, Guild Mortgage, PrimeLending, and Movement Mortgage. Visit the MortgageSAT page on the STRATMOR Group website to see the winners’ lists.

Ginnie Mae, FHA, and VA always moving 

For about a week there was a lot of talk about a potential for an FHA mortgage insurance premium (MIP) cut (and the corresponding impact on private mortgage insurers). Given the new Administration’s focus on affordable housing and homeowner diversification, the odds slightly favor a moderate FHA MIP cut in the coming months despite the elevated level of seriously delinquent loans in its book. But really, given the lack of inventory out there, any lack of affordability is due to the low number of listings, not FHA mortgage insurance levels.

Beginning in February 2021, a new Single Family Pool Type, “RG” and a new Loan Purpose “5 – Re-performing” will be available in Ginnie Mae data. Ginnie Mae added “February 1, 2021 Notes and News” regarding the deadline extension to transfer BNYM to another document custodian.

FHA is expanding its relief efforts to assist homeowners with FHA-insured mortgages with updated guidance in Mortgagee Letter (ML) 2021-05. Updates include extensions of Single-Family Foreclosure and Eviction Moratorium, Start Date of COVID-19 Initial Forbearance, and Home Equity Conversion Mortgage (HECM) Extension Period; Expansion of COVID-19 Loss Mitigation Options.

Citi Correspondent Lending Bulletin 2021-02 topics include Income & VOE Requirements for FHA Loans, critical changes to Ability to Repay/Qualified Mortgage Rule, new version of HUD 92900-A, and clarification on DU Appraisal Waivers on Loans with Mortgage Insurance.

PennyMac will be making updates to the Government LLPAs effective for all Best Effort commitments taken on or after Tuesday, February 23, 2021, as follows: Update values on the Government ‘FICO Price Adjustments’ Grid and Update value on the FHA Streamline Price Adjustment. A sample of the updated rate sheet(s) is posted to the PennyMac Portal.

Take advantage of the new FHA Express submission option from Plaza Home Mortgage to accelerate closings on qualifying core FHA loans. FHA Express is available for
W-2 and fixed income borrowers, for purchase, rate/term, or cash-out refinances with Conforming or High Balance loan amounts. Qualifying loans receive expedited underwriting, are competitively priced and can often close in as little as 10 to 15 days.

News and Announcements from LoanStream Wholesale posted information on the redesigned Uniform Residential Loan Application, recent changes to SSA89 AND 4506-C forms,

Enhanced Government Guidelines regarding FHA Min FICO now 550 (90% LTV), VA Min FICO now 550 (100% LTV) and COVID-19 Updates.

PCF Wholesale has dropped FHA and VA down to 620 FICO, visit its website for information.

Skip 2 payments & offer your client 2.25% (3.039) on standard balance and 2.25% (1.773) on high balance VA IRRRLS. Find out details on the PCF Wholesale website.

Flagstar Lending Wholesale is updating the existing VA Cash-out>90% LTV LLPA from -5.000 to -3.000 on new locks, effective immediately.

It’s FHA February at LoanStream Wholesale offering two new promotions. All FHA Loans get a 50 BPS Price Improvement effective immediately. *No Lender Fee (*LoanStream Underwriting Fee and Doc Fee) on FHA Streamlines (does not include VA) through February 28^th. Lender fee waived for all FHA Streamline Loans locked 1/29/21 through 2/28. Terms and Conditions apply, this loan special subject to change at any time.

loanDepot Wholesale has made improvements to its VA IRRRL program, loanDepot to loanDepot loans with 680-719 credit scores. The 90% LTV restriction has been removed and AVMs are no longer required. Refer to the VA IRRRL Fixed/ARM matrix for program details.

Plaza Home Mortgage® offers the FHA 203(k) Standard and Limited renovation loan programs. Download Plaza’s flyer for more information.

Capital markets

Depending on the product, the Great State of Texas is usually in the top five for production. The economy in Texas, which accounts for roughly 10 percent of GDP, saw widespread shutdowns due to loss of power, water, impassable roads and both residential and commercial flooding from burst pipes following a winter storm that crippled much of the state last week. This will likely impact data over the first quarter as supply chain disruptions will be felt nationwide; however there will be little disruption to employment.

Turning to last week’s data, retail sales spike 5.3 percent in January as the $900 billion stimulus made its way into the economy. While January saw increases in discretionary items such as autos, furniture and electronics, the winter recent winter storms may leave many consumers to pivot spending to increased utility payments in February. Wholesale energy prices drove producer prices up 1.3 percent in January and are expected to continue their rise in February. As we move towards spring, the year over year gains are expected to show larger increases due to both the weakness from last year as well as firming prices this year. Expectations for higher inflation have increased yields in both Treasuries and MBS and mortgage rates are continuing to trend higher.

Yesterday was a great example of why companies hedge locked mortgage pipelines with agency MBS securities and not Treasuries. Treasury prices were nearly unchanged but MBS prices were down/worse .375-.50. The 10-year Treasury yield pulled back to 1.39 percent in the morning hours before closing at 1.36 percent on the day due to a slow unwinding of the recovery. The movement came even before the bi market-moving events of this week: namely, Fed Chair Powell’s semiannual monetary policy testimony and the quarterly refunding. While Treasuries pulled back in curve steepening fashion, MBS spreads were much wider by the close, which may spell the imminent end for the 1.5 percent coupon in the Fed’s buying rotation.

Though it had already been priced in by markets, a House panel yesterday advanced the $1.9 trillion stimulus legislation, meaning it could pass the full chamber by the end of the week. Not a single Republican voted in favor of the bill, which includes $1,400 stimulus checks, enhanced jobless benefits, a minimum wage increase, and vaccine funding. Elsewhere in Washington, the Mortgage Bankers Association’s latest Forbearance and Call Volume Survey revealed that the total number of loans now in forbearance decreased by 7 bps to 5.22 percent of servicers’ portfolio volume in the prior week as of February 14. According to MBA’s estimate, 2.6 million homeowners are in forbearance plans.

The likely highlight of today’s events is Fed Chair Powell’s appearance before the House Financial Services Committee. On the data front, we’ve already seen several regional Fed surveys, highlighted by Philadelphia Fed non-manufacturing for February (slight positive). Later this morning brings Richmond manufacturing and services for February, Dallas services for the same month, the Case-Shiller and FHFA home prices, both for December, and consumer confidence in February. The Desk of the Fed will conduct two operations targeting up to $5.3 billion, starting with $2 billion GNII 2 percent and 2.5 percent followed by $3.3 billion UMBS30 1.5 percent and 2 percent. We begin the day with Agency MBS prices unchanged and the 10-year yielding 1.36 percent as volatility takes a pause.

Sometimes life, and what you see, isn’t what you think. Check out this optical illusion where the circles don’t move. (Thank you to Cyndi S. for this one.)

Visit www.robchrisman.com for more information on our industry partners, access archived commentaries, or to subscribe to the Daily Mortgage News and Commentary. If you’re interested, visit my periodic blog at the STRATMOR Group web site. The current blog is, “Servicing: A Valuable Asset”. The Commentary’s podcast is live and at any place you obtain your podcasts (like Apple or Spotify).

qoɹ

(Market data provided in partnership with MBS Live. For free job postings and to view candidate resumes visit LenderNews. This newsletter is designed for sophisticated mortgage professionals only. There are no paid endorsements by me. For up-to-date mortgage news visit Mortgage News Daily. For archived commentaries, or to subscribe, go to www.robchrisman.com. Copyright 2021 Chrisman LLC. All rights reserved. Occasional paid job & product listings do appear. This report or any portion hereof may not be reprinted, sold, or redistributed without the written consent of Rob Chrisman.)

Source: Rob Chrisman

What do we have to look forward to? The next Federal holiday isn’t until the end of May (Memorial Day). There’s Easter, a month and a half away (April 4), and most states’ clocks “spring ahead” on March 14. The employees of People’s United Financial, Inc. and M&T Bank can look forward to working through their $7.6 billion announced merger/M&T acquisition. Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae can look forward to earnings. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac funded about 1.2 million adverse market qualified refinance mortgages totaling $350 billion from Dec. 1 through Jan. 31, according to IMF. At a one half-point charge, that’s a jaw-dropping $1.75 billion in adverse market fees collected in the first 60 days. Besides people wondering where the “adverse market” is, what is the motivation for the U.S. Government to cut them loose? Yes, those involved in residential lending tend to be doing well. Home life? Maybe not so much. Thank you to Ken S. who sent this musical update on staying at home during the pandemic.

Employment & hires

loanDepot Wholesale is looking for two new Operations leaders in the Midwest & South regions to oversee Operations and support regional growth through strategic leadership and collaboration with Divisional and Regional Sales Leaders. The right Leaders will be dynamic and highly motivated with a strong desire to be an integral part of taking their Region to the next level. To learn more about these exciting opportunities, click on your market of interest Regional Operations Director – Chicago, IL or Regional Operations Director – Tampa, FL.

“Caliber Home Loans is proud to be a lender that puts our veteran and active-duty service members first. We’ve helped over 80,000 military families receive VA loan funding since 2016. Caliber is always working to improve customer experience, which is why we’ve launched a redesigned and revamped military website. The new design gives military families easy access to countless solutions from one of our 700 designated VA loan consultants. Our website has everything a loan consultant needs to assist customers with calculating a mortgage payment or learning about Caliber’s Challenge Coin. We’ve been a Military Friendly^® Brand five years in a row for a reason — we’re dedicated to our American heroes. Visit our new military website. To be immediately considered for Operations or Sales positions, email Jonathan Stanley or Brian Miller respectively.”

Unmatched marketing platform for originators at no cost: Geneva Financial has been named the #1 Mortgage Lender by consumers in Arizona, home of our Corporate Office, on the 24^th Annual Ranking Arizona Consumer Poll of best businesses! Further proof that Home Loans Powered By Humans® is the mortgage experience consumers want and expect! Geneva Financial is filling Branch Manager and Loan Officer positions in 44 states. With the recent addition of a National Operations Manager focused on industry-leading turn-times, Geneva is committed to closing your deals while paying you more! Explore Branch and Originator opportunities and our unmatched no-cost marketing platform for our Originators.

Knock, the real estate technology company, has hired mortgage and home loan industry vet Laura Gray as Head of Lending to “lead the day-to-day operations of Knock’s innovative lending operation that powers the Knock Home Swap™, a revolutionary way for homeowners to buy their new home before they sell.”

Shane Jones recently joined SLK Global Solutions as VP tax outsourcing operations. Jones, with his 25-plus-year career, wrote that servicers are working “through a record number of residential onboardings due to tremendous refinance volume.” He added, “I am glad to be a part of a company whose vision is to help clients drive tangible business outcomes and make the tax servicing process simpler for lenders.”

Spring EQ hired Saket Nigam to be its SVP, Capital Markets, responsible for leading the company’s continued growth in the consumer-direct and wholesale mortgage markets for first and second mortgage products.

Broker & lender products and services

Exciting things are happening at TCF Bank! TCF continues to expand programs by lending to 89.99% CLTV on purchases, refinances and piggyback delayed transactions where the first has closed within the last 90 days. TCF also makes it easier for transactions that require a non-occupant co-borrower, borrowers with all types of visas and borrowers with limited assets. Recently, the MBA reported a record-high $20.4 trillion in homeowner equity in the third quarter of 2020. It’s a great time to help borrowers leverage the equity in their home for their immediate or future needs. As a leader in home equity lending for third-party partners, TCF continues what it started in 2012. See the difference that years of experience in this space can provide to you and your borrowers. ©2021 TCF National Bank. Equal Opportunity Lender. Equal Housing Lender. Member FDIC. For approved professionals only. All loans are subject to credit approval.

“RM Analyze: Business Intelligence by Richey May. RM Analyze, Richey May’s business intelligence platform, is the analytics “easy button” for mortgage companies. In a volatile industry currently enjoying a tremendous swell in production, you can’t afford to wait for your data or build a solution on your own. RM Analyze is out-of-the-box BI that is built and supported by consultants with decades of cumulative mortgage experience. It connects to any source of data (LOS, GL, CRM, HRIS, and more) to help you see clearly into your business. With mobile in mind, you can get clear visualizations into any department within your business right in the palm of your hand. Log in from your laptop, desktop, tablet, or phone to see all of the metrics you need. From Production, Operations, Finance, and more, RM Analyze meets your data needs from end to end. Contact us to schedule a demo.”

Are you ready for FHA Streamline opportunities in this market? Learn how to efficiently submit your files once for a final approval! Join Freedom Mortgage Wholesale for a live webinar training session on FHA Streamline mortgage products and origination processes. Ideal for new or experienced government originators. Sign up for an FHA Streamline webinar on 3/02.

“MAXEX brings together the industry’s most active investors to simplify liquidity for non-agency loans. We recently expanded our national sales team and are happy to welcome Steven R. Valladares, CMB as Head of Sales as well as Kelly Krause, Paul Chessare, Susan Ramos and SuSheila Dhillon to our national account team. Visit us at maxex.com to learn about how you can get competitive daily pricing, fast liquidity, and better execution on a broad range of programs including jumbo, non-QM, ESG and more.”

Wholesale lenders continue to adopt ReadyPrice as an innovative new way to enhance their product’s reach, improve the quality of loan submissions, and make loan delivery effortless. As MLO’s across the country are signing up daily for instant access to the ReadyPrice platform, there is no better time for mortgage lenders specializing in all types of loan products to consider ReadyPrice as one option to broaden their broker base. Schedule a call with ReadyPrice founder Rick Soukoulis today or visit www.readyprice.com/lenders to learn more.

“Imagine the critical insights you could gain from daily, near real-time loan-level information on the majority of U.S. mortgages. Whether you’re an asset manager, MBS trader, servicing portfolio manager or other industry professional, the ability to perform intra-month analyses would be a game changer. With Black Knight’s McDash℠ data you can do just that. Our McDash mortgage-performance data set now offers an option for clients to get daily delinquency, forbearance and payment data, an industry first. Our servicer-contributed McDash data spans the full spectrum of agency, non-agency, and portfolio mortgages so you have visibility into a comprehensive representation of loans. If you’re buying and selling MBSs, valuing MSRs, creating retention strategies or involved in other high-stakes activities, why not include the most current loan-level data available as part of your analysis? Schedule a demo today.”

Conventional conforming shifts

As a reminder, the Agencies extended the flexibilities related to COVID-19. For example, here is Freddie Mac’s Bulletin 2021-7.

Fannie Mae issued updates to the impact of COVID-19 on Originations in LL-2021-03 extending the verbal verifications of employment and power of attorney flexibilities to March 31^st. Also,

LL-2021-04 extends the temporary flexibilities on appraisals due to COVID-19 until March 31^st.

Fannie Mae has updated servicing requirements due to the Impact of COVID-19 including extending the suspension of certain foreclosure-related activities discussed in LL-2021-02 and changes to the COVID-19 Payment Deferral Lender Letter formerly addressed in LL-2020-07, updated in LL-2021-07.

Earlier this month, Fannie Mae issued Lender Letter LL-2021-05, elaborating on Fannie’s advanced notice of its intention to cease purchasing Adjustable-Rate Mortgage (ARM) products that use the Constant Maturity Treasury (CMT) index as described in Lender Letter LL-2020-02.

PennyMac Correspondent posted a new announcement regarding aligning with the Freddie Mac reduction to the maximum LTV for Home Possible Mortgages secured by 2- to 4-unit properties. In announcement 21-09, PennyMac provided information regarding its alignment with Fannie Mae SEL 2020-07, with the exception of the updates on single-width manufactured homes and community land trusts. PennyMac is aligning with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac guidance for borrowers using self-employment income to qualify and the age of tax return requirements from Freddie Mac. View the PennyMac Correspondent Group Announcement 21-12 for details.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are updating guidance to clarify requirements when solar panels are leased, financed, or owned. Read the Mountain West Financial Wholesale Bulletin 21W-015 for more information.

Plaza Home offers Agency Express for Fannie Mae^® and Freddie Mac loans. Visit its information page for more details.

In Bulletin 2020-43, Freddie Mac updated its delivery requirements for two- to four-unit condominium (condo) projects and detached condo units. Purchase deadline for Loans underwritten to current Freddie Mac requirements must be purchased by Wells Fargo Funding prior to April 3, 2021.

This loanDepot Weekly Announcement discusses overlay matrix updates to Conventional, COVID-19 extensions and self-employment updates from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, and product expansions on its loanDepot Select.

PRMG’s Resource Center has been updated with the following changes: updated AUS Tolerance Requirements, the addition of Account Executive and Account Manager Assignments – 117 (Wholesale), updated Tax Transcript / Tax Return Requirements, updated LoanBeam – Using with Freddie Mac LPA, the addition of Bulk PMI Quotes and posted updated Optimal Blue TPO User Guide (Wholesale).

Effective Monday, March 1, Flagstar Bank will only accept the redesigned URLA as mandated by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. To support the redesigned URLA, Rural Development is implementing a new Guaranteed Underwriting System effective Monday, March 1, 2021 Read Flagstar’s Memo 21024 for details.

Capital markets

Last week’s announcement regarding January’s surge in retail sales surprised all 68 economists on Bloomberg and highlighted the swiftness of the $900 billion stimulus flowing through the economy as most households received direct payments early in the month. With another, larger round of stimulus likely on tap, economists are adjusting their forecasts reflecting stronger personal income than previously expected that could bring forward spending from later quarters to the first half of the year. Should additional stimulus continue to buoy consumer spending imports may see a strong pace of growth as demand outstrips current inventory levels. Despite the drag rising imports have on GDP, economists are forecasting GDP growth for 2021 to be in the 4 – 6 percent range, which would mark the strongest annual pace of growth in over twenty years. This is also affecting market opinions on inflation as well and the direction of interest rates, which have trended higher although no one is currently forecasting runaway inflation. The Federal Reserve is content to leave monetary policy alone until employment sufficiently rebounds.

Last week closed with a strong Existing Home Sales report for January, which contributed to the daylong retreat in Treasuries, while the MBS basis ended tighter. Existing home sales increased 0.6 percent month-over-month in January to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 6.69 million. Total sales in January were up 23.7 percent from a year ago despite the supply of existing homes for sale being at an all-time low. The 10-year Treasury note ended the week up +15 bps from where it started. More importantly, the Mortgage News Daily 30-year rate registered 3.04 percent, up +18 bps on the week. The combination of low homes inventory and increasing mortgage rates presents a big issue for affordability going forward.

For the week, the NY Fed Desk purchased an average of $6 billion per day versus $8.3 billion in originator supply. 66 percent was in Class A with the other 34 percent split evenly between Class B and Class C. Today’s schedule sees the Desk purchasing up to $7.6 billion MBS, including over $6.2 billion UMBS30s. Depository banks seem to be buying the lion’s share of the remaining Agency MBS.

This month-end week sees some potential major market moving events between the $183 billion in month-end coupon supply and Fed Chair Powell’s Semiannual Monetary Policy Report to Congress. On the data front, investors will receive updates on consumer confidence, Q4 GDP and personal income and spending. Today’s economic calendar is already underway with the Chicago Fed National Activity Index for January (up to +.66). Later this morning brings the Leading Index for January and Dallas Fed Texas manufacturing for February. We begin the day with Agency MBS prices worse/down .250 and the 10-year yielding 1.36 after closing last week at 1.35 percent on continued expectations of the economy picking up steam as vaccinations increase.

AIDS Warning!

Senior citizens are the nation’s leading carriers of AIDS!

Hearing aids

Band aids

Roll aids

Walking aids

Medical aids

Government aids

Most of all, monetary aid to their kids

Visit www.robchrisman.com for more information on our industry partners, access archived commentaries, or to subscribe to the Daily Mortgage News and Commentary. If you’re interested, visit my periodic blog at the STRATMOR Group web site. The current blog is, “Servicing: A Valuable Asset”. The Commentary’s podcast is live and at any place you obtain your podcasts (like Apple or Spotify).

qoɹ

(Market data provided in partnership with MBS Live. For free job postings and to view candidate resumes visit LenderNews. This newsletter is designed for sophisticated mortgage professionals only. There are no paid endorsements by me. For up-to-date mortgage news visit Mortgage News Daily. For archived commentaries, or to subscribe, go to www.robchrisman.com. Copyright 2021 Chrisman LLC. All rights reserved. Occasional paid job & product listings do appear. This report or any portion hereof may not be reprinted, sold, or redistributed without the written consent of Rob Chrisman.)

Source: Rob Chrisman