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Mortgage rates are the highest they’ve been this year. Did loan officers expect this?

Housing Wire

“ Recovery year ” was the theme heading into 2024 as mortgage professionals hoped for some reprieve in a frozen housing market characterized by high interest rates, low inventory levels and sluggish sales. What I tell all loan officers, no matter who I talk to, is that there’s no foreclosure crisis coming on the horizon,” Saghafi said.

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FHA does a solid for mortgage credit rejects. Will it move the needle for loan officers?

Housing Wire

The FHA’s announcement in early September to waive a requirement that FHA-approved lenders flag rejected loans in the FHA Connection system is a step in the right direction since declined borrowers don’t have to overcome a stigma, loan officers said. The FHA/VA share in Q2 2023 stood at 22.9%

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Mortgage market affordability and inventory challenges

Housing Wire

With a rapid spike in interest rates, inventory at historic lows, home prices rising at unprecedented levels above income, and a purchase market that is both highly anxious and digitally reliant, mortgage and real estate professionals must be strategic to capture the market opportunity today. Inventory rising, historically low.

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Lenders, don’t overlook real estate investors

Housing Wire

As the market moves into a post-refi-boom era, loan officers face tough competition for purchase loans. HousingWire recently spoke with William Tessar, president of Civic Financial Services , about the private lending space and how LOs can benefit from serving real estate investors. .

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The next refi boom’s double-edged sword: EPOs

Housing Wire

“Lenders and loan officers right now are just in survival mode,” Hoff said in an interview. About 20 loan officers under her leadership produced $116 million in mortgages over the last 12 months, a drop from $223 million in 2022, according to the mortgage tech platform Modex. When will the market turn?

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This growing IMB aims to capture leads through its proprietary tech, not agent referrals

Housing Wire

Non-QM ripe for the taking Faced with a lack of inventory across the country, lenders have been exploring ways to create new buyers. Target buyers for Cliffco include non-traditional buyers seeking investor loans. The lender has about 80 loan officers and aims to hire up to 100 in states.

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How loan originators survived a cutthroat mortgage business in 2023

Housing Wire

In his 20 years in mortgage banking, no year has compared to 2023 in terms of difficulty, said Ben Cohen, Guaranteed Rate ’s managing director and a top-producing loan officer. It was another brutal year, pushing loan originators to work longer hours, close loans faster while diversifying their mortgage product offerings.

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