Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 19, 2020

The average U.S. mortgage rate for a 30-year fixed loan fell this week to 2.72%, Freddie Mac said in a report on Thursday – the lowest rate in the survey’s near 50-year history. This week’s rate broke the previous record set on Nov. 5 by 6 basis points. The average fixed rate for a 15-year mortgage also fell by 6 basis points to 2.28%. After this week’s record drop, there have now been 17 consecutive weeks when average mortgage rates have been below 3%.

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JMV Lending

NOVEMBER 20, 2020

Hot markets foster appraisal issues – every time. This is b/c aggressive buyers in multiple bid situations frequently offer to pay far more for a property than what closed comparable sales can support in an appraisal. If buyers have ample cash, low appraisals are often not an issue, as buyers can simply bring in cash […]. The post Comparable Sales Appraisers Can’t Use; Appraisal Reviews appeared first on JVM Lending.

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Riverfront Appraisals

NOVEMBER 20, 2020

When the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP) first came on the scene, its purpose was “to promote and maintain a high level of public trust in appraisal practice by establishing requirements for appraisers.” In part one of this blog & podcast series, I shared with you a few questions which were on my mind. […]. The post Promoting Public Trust Part 12: Frequently Asked Questions appeared first on Riverfront Appraisals.

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Aspen Appraisal Group

NOVEMBER 18, 2020

With COVID-19 numbers on the rise here in Utah, Governor Herbert has mandated that we are now required to wear masks whenever we’re out in public. We here at Aspen Appraisal Group wanted to give you our COVID-19 update on our efforts during this pandemic. We want to share this short video with you to let you know that we’re still open for business and doing appraisal inspections here in Utah.

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Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 19, 2020

The Department of Justice (DOJ) filed a lawsuit against the National Association of Realtors (NAR) on Thursday, alleging a series of violations of antitrust law, including commission arrangements and consumer disclosure requirements. NAR has adopted a “series of rules, policies, and practices governing, among other things, the publication and marketing of real estate, real estate broker commissions, as well as real estate broker access to lockboxes, that have been widely adopted by NAR’s m

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McKissock

NOVEMBER 18, 2020

Real estate, like politics, is all local. When buyers and sellers are browsing the internet looking for the right agent to guide them through their next transaction, they’re looking for a local real estate market expert. Of course, they’re looking for someone with in-depth market knowledge. What are the sales trends? How much should they offer? What will the local real estate market look like in the next six months?

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Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 19, 2020

Existing home sales came in at a whopping 6,850,000 , beating estimates with the highest print since 2006. Days on market fell from 36 days to 21 days on a year-over-year basis. Cash buyers remain at a historically high level of 19%, the same as last year, while sales grew 26.6% year over year. The housing market is hot. While we celebrate these strong numbers, keep in mind these three points: First, expect the data to moderate, so don’t freak out when we see the rate of growth cool down.

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Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 17, 2020

The Mortgage Bankers Association on Tuesday released revised estimates for the third and fourth quarter of 2020 as well as predicting record purchase volume for 2021. Although The MBA expects decreased numbers of refinancings will lower overall origination next year to around $2.56 trillion, that would still be the second-highest number in the last fifteen years.

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Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 16, 2020

Though housing didn’t take center stage during the 2020 election season, those who work in affordable housing were keeping a close eye on the race, and are now looking expectantly at President-elect Joe Biden’s $640 billion housing plan originally proposed in February. Many organizations took the time to welcome the new administration but did not shy away from reminding him of his campaign promises and the need for swift aid.

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Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 16, 2020

When you get a mortgage, there are several options you can choose from, including FHA, VA, USDA, and conventional mortgages. And the one you pick? That will determine how big a down payment you’ll need, what credit score you should have and all the other requirements you’ll need to meet, too. But choosing the right mortgage product can be difficult — especially if you’ve never bought a home before.

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Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 19, 2020

A slim majority of California residents voted in favor of Proposition 19 on Election Day, green-lighting a motion that gives new property tax breaks to older homeowners while increasing property taxes for those inheriting their parents’ or grandparents’ properties. The latter is a big deal for the roughly 650,000 Californians who, since 2010, have received a tax break allowing them to maintain their relatives’ low property taxes when they inherit the home.

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Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 18, 2020

Mortgage applications decreased 0.3% last week, following a 0.5% drop from the beginning of November , according to a report from the Mortgage Bankers Association. . The refinance index dropped 2%, while the unadjusted purchase index fell 1% from the previous week. The seasonally adjusted purchase index climbed 3%. The refinance and purchase indexes still dwarf last year’s totals from the same week, though – 98% and 26% year-over-year, respectively.

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Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 20, 2020

Ellie Mae ’s Origination Insight report for October demonstrates some of the side effects of the historically low mortgage rates we’ve seen in 2020: incredibly high volume and an increase in time-to-close. Across the board, 30-year mortgage rates decreased on average from 3% in September to 2.99% in October, continuing this year’s trend of low rates.

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Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 19, 2020

Digital notary platform NotaryCam announced on Wednesday it has been awarded the Remote Online Notarization (RON) Compliance Certification through the Mortgage Industry Standard Maintenance Organization (MISMO) – making it the eighth company to receive the specialized certification. Originally introduced in April, the MISMO RON compliance certification was designed to assure RON tech providers meet a universal set of standards including credential analysis, borrower identification, capturing and

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Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 16, 2020

If you’re using a home loan to buy a house, then you could have two types of insurance in your future, home insurance and mortgage insurance. Home insurance is also called homeowner’s insurance or hazard insurance. These policies cover damage to your property and losses you might suffer in a natural disaster, flood, break-in or other unexpected circumstance.

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Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 18, 2020

Out-of-town moves are on the rise, and it’s largely thanks to the pandemic. Some homebuyers are looking to move closer to friends and family, while others are simply on the hunt for more space and a break from cramped urban cores. . There are also changing work arrangements to consider. With remote work growing in popularity, proximity to the office is no longer a priority.

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Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 16, 2020

The Texas border town of El Paso, the state’s westernmost city with a population of less than 1 million, has experienced an enormous uptick in home purchases since March – the month that COVID-19 began shutting down businesses, forcing people to stay indoors, and eliminating jobs. But the virus has had anything but a negative impact on real estate in El Paso.

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Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 17, 2020

In 2020, remote online notarization became one of the key technologies being discussed among mortgage professionals. So what does 2021 have in store for RON? There are many different thoughts on what 2021 could bring for the eClosing technology (and even discussions on whether you can have a true eClosing without it), but much could depend on the consumer demand in the year ahead.

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Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 19, 2020

Homeowners in Charlotte, North Carolina and Raleigh, North Carolina can now use Knock Home Swap to purchase their new home before selling their old one. The solution is now available in 11 markets in six states. Home Swap is offered exclusively through local real estate professionals who have been trained as Knock Certified Agents. In North Carolina, Home Swap will be offered through Better Homes & Gardens Real Estate Paracle , Wilkinson ERA Real Estate and ERA Live Moore.

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Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 18, 2020

At the Notarize Rewired event Wednesday on the panel, Home Buying After COVID, four experts talked about some of the largest pain points in the title industry. When asked if they could change one thing, or “wave a magic wand,” about the housing industry’s journey toward digital mortgage adoption, the panelists were clear: integration. The trend toward a fully digital mortgage continues to grow.

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Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 16, 2020

COVID-19 is a historically unique event for the mortgage industry. Typically, during a crisis or catastrophic event that impacts the housing industry, you’d see a significant downtick in mortgage originations and an uptick in delinquencies, ultimately leading to foreclosures. However, the COVID-19 pandemic has been a unique crisis to not only live in and learn to work through, but also to follow as it relates to the mortgage business.

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Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 20, 2020

Recent tech innovations have targeted point of sale or specific underwriting tasks to improve operational efficiencies, leaving the manual review of appraisals as an underexplored area ripe for digitization and automation. Collateral underwriting turn times in particular have been slowing for years as new guidelines, overlays and documentation processes have added to the already-long appraisal review process.

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Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 18, 2020

HousingWire recently spoke with CoreLogic’s Chief Appraiser Shawn Telford about re-examining traditional appraisal workflows in light of the changes brought on by COVID-19. HousingWire: What changes have appraisers had to make to their workflows in light of social distancing and other COVID-related concerns? Shawn Telford: What has changed in many cases is how lenders are asking appraisers to form opinions of value.

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Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 17, 2020

The largest owner of U.S. real estate brokerages and franchise brands , Realogy Holdings Corp., has announced the appointment of Susan Yannaccone as president and chief executive officer of Realogy Franchise Group , effective Nov. 30. Yannaccone joined Realogy in 2015 as the chief operating officer of ERA , and has since held senior franchise and owned brokerage leadership positions.

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Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 17, 2020

Indianapolis-based High Alpha has launched Shaker , a collaborative CRM and real estate transaction management platform. Through the platform, Shaker offers a suite of tools to streamline client communication and collaboration, including transaction management, client communication, predictive insights and a built-in referral engine. According to Shaker, since launching its private beta earlier this year, the company is already working with teams at Coldwell Banker , RE/MAX and Berkshire Hathawa

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Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 16, 2020

eOriginal announced the release of its new ClosingCenter 2.3, which includes a hub to connect lenders to the right remote online notarization partner. This move comes after a year of change for the title industry. RON has become the go-to solution for many lenders and the tech to strive for with many others. “In 2020, RON became an essential service to ensure closings continued uninterrupted, and now more than ever, lenders need RON tools that empower and optimize their workflow,” Notarize CEO P

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McKissock

NOVEMBER 20, 2020

Are you interested in learning how to become a luxury real estate appraiser ? There are many reasons to consider specializing in this profitable appraisal niche. Not only can you charge higher fees while completing fewer assignments per month, but you’ll also have the opportunity to evaluate custom, high-end properties that are interesting and challenging to appraise.

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McKissock

NOVEMBER 17, 2020

Earlier this year, we asked our real estate appraisal community, “What’s the ONE thing that is most often overlooked by appraisers?” The top answer we received was “Highest and Best Use.” Highest and Best Use is the reasonable, probable, and legal use of vacant land or an improved property. Here’s a breakdown of the four criteria that Highest and Best Use must meet. 1.

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McKissock

NOVEMBER 16, 2020

The latest episode of The Winners Table is coming to Facebook Live on Thursday, November 19th. The Winners Table is a series in which a host interviews top real estate agents about hot topics in the industry. This week, join host Jeremias “JMan” Maneiro as he talks to Dallas, Texas real estate agent, coach and entrepreneur, Chastin Miles.

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Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 16, 2020

With COVID infection rates exploding and hospitalization rates rising as we go into the cold winter months, the risk this poses to our recovering housing market is a question that should be addressed. In a previous article, I identified infection rates during the winter months as one of the economy’s high-risk variables. Before COVID-19 hit our shores, we were trending at 10% growth, working at cycle highs in demand.

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Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 19, 2020

Existing home sales grew for the fifth consecutive month in October, up 4.3% from September to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 6.85 million, according to a report from the National Association of Realtors on Thursday. Compared to last October, sales are up 26.6%. “The surge in sales in recent months has now offset the spring market losses,” NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun said. “With news that a COVID-19 vaccine will soon be available, and with mortgage rates projected to

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Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 16, 2020

The U.S. forbearance rate measuring the share of mortgages with suspended payments experienced a 20 basis points improvement last week after it fell to 5.47% from 5.67% the week prior , according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. The U.S forbearance rate has now fallen for 11 consecutive weeks with an estimated 2.7 million homeowners still in mortgage forbearance plans.

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Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 20, 2020

Artificial Intelligence company Quantarium announced on Thursday its partnership with Valligent Technologies to launch a condition adjusted “Quantarium Valuation Model” for equity lending, broker price opinions and real estate owned valuations. The latest tech, coined QVM-Insights, leverages Quantariums AI power to incorporate real-time updates of a property’s condition to provide users with an automated valuation model.

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Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 18, 2020

Real estate agents across the country have made it clear – low inventory and low mortgage rates have kept them busy throughout the pandemic, especially in typical vacation destinations. That trend is holding true for the housing market in Hawaii, located about 2,500 miles west of the mainland. According to Title Guaranty Hawaii , single-family home sales in the month of September were up 46.2% year over year on the big island, Hawaii.

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