Good morning! Today is Thursday, February 25. The Food and Drug Administration said Johnson & Johnson’s Covid-19 vaccine works safely, paving the way for the approval of a third vaccine in the U.S. as early as this weekend. New York City is set to reopen public middle schools for in-person learning today for the first time since November. A new more infectious Covid variant in California makes up more than half of the infections in 44 counties. And in mortgage and housing news … MORTGAGE APPS: The Texas snow storm deflated mortgage application numbers. LUXURY RENTALS: Landlords continue to see prices rise for luxury single-family rentals as the pandemic-fueled recession impacts socioeconomic groups unevenly. MARKET WORRIES: Two big reasons investors are worried about the housing market. QM…
Good morning! Today is Wednesday, February 24. Tiger Woods is stable and recovering, following surgery to stabilize his leg injured in a car crash. Illinois became the first state to sign a law eliminating cash bail. Twitter is adding a new warning label to tweets believed to contain information obtained through hacking. And in mortgage and housing news … HOUSING STIMULUS: The Mortgage Note reports that unprecedented liquidity in the proposed stimulus bill is poised to support continued gains in house prices, which have boomed in recent months thanks to low interest rates. RECORD PRICES: Home prices in the United States surged 10.8 percent in 2020 – the largest annual increase on record. OWN VS. RENT: Redfin is courting first-time homebuyers with a $608 million deal to buy…
Good morning! Today is Tuesday, February 23. President Biden held a memorial service to honor the more than 500,000 lives lost to Covid-19. Facebook reversed its ban on news pages in Australia after amendments to a law requiring the social media company to demonstrate a “significant contribution” to local journalism. New York City will reopen its movie theaters for the first time in nearly a year. And in mortgage and housing news … FORBEARANCE: The number of mortgages in forbearance dropped for the third straight week. HOME SALES: Existing-home sales ticked up slightly in January and increased 23.7 percent from a year ago. IPO PEAK: Investors fueling an initial public offering bonanza are snubbing many U.S. mortgage providers’ stock market debuts over concerns that the sector might…
Good morning! Today is Monday, February 22. Airlines were told to stop flying Boeing’s wide-body 777 aircraft equipped with a type of engine that broke apart during a flight over the weekend. The pace of U.S. Covid-19 vaccinations has drastically slowed, hampered by snow and power outages. A Chicago restaurant owner bought out street vendors’ tamales so they could come in from record low temperatures. And in mortgage and housing news … AIRBNB TENSIONS: Hurt by refunds, some are trying to cut Airbnb out of bookings or taking legal action. The company says it is working to reduce tensions. BROKER COMMISSIONS: Online home buyers do much of the work involved in acquiring a house. So why are brokers’ fees still calculated under the old system? RETIREMENT…
Good morning! Today is Friday, February 19. Power is restored for most of Texas, following a devastating winter storm, but two-thirds of residents still don’t have drinking water. Facebook is blocking the collection of sensitive data via apps after a probe into reports of unauthorized sharing of personal information. One out of 10 U.S. workers will have to switch jobs by 2030 as Covid-19 increases e-commerce, deliveries and the use of artificial intelligence and robots. And in mortgage and housing news … MORTGAGE RATES: Mortgage rates climbed for the first time in weeks but remain near historically low levels, according to the weekly Primary Mortgage Market Survey released by Freddie Mac. LOANDEPOT RESULTS: loanDepot reported lower quarterly net income for the fourth quarter – but…
Good morning! Today is Thursday, February 18. Millions of Texans are still without electricity after a brutal winter storm, with more blizzard conditions expected to sweep across the South and East this week. Japan appointed Olympic speedskating medalist Seiko Hashimoto to be its cabinet minister in charge of the Olympics, replacing Yoshiro Mori, who resigned after making sexist remarks. Facebook is banning all Australian news posts in reaction to proposed legislation that would require Facebook to pay to link to news outlets. And in mortgage and housing news … MORTGAGE APPS: Mortgage applications declined 5.1 percent for the week ending February 12, according to the weekly report released by the Mortgage Bankers Association. COSTLY MISTAKE: Citibank was trying to make $7.8M in interest…
Good morning! Today is Wednesday, February 17. Cold and snow is blanketing 73.2 percent of the nation this morning. The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases reports that vaccines won’t be available to the “general public” until mid- to late May or early June. New York state is suing Amazon over worker treatment during the pandemic. And in mortgage and housing news … EVICTION MORATORIUM: The Biden Administration announced that it will extend the Federal Housing Administration’s foreclosure and eviction moratoriums into the summer, while also extending mortgage forbearance options. FORBEARANCE NUMBERS: The number of U.S. mortgages in forbearance dropped to 2.6 million last week after holding steady for several weeks, according to the weekly report released by the Mortgage Bankers Association. PA RENT RELIEF: The…
Good morning! Today is Tuesday, February 16. The U.S. House of Representatives will consider legislation to create a 9/11-style commission to examine the Capitol riot and pay for advanced security. A winter storm is causing massive power outages in Texas. NASA’s next Mars rover is getting ready to touch down inside the planet’s Jezero Crater on Feb. 18. And in mortgage and housing news … FHA DREAMERS: A change made by the Trump administration has opened the door for DACA recipients, often referred to as “Dreamers,” to get Federal Housing Administration loans to help in their pursuit of home ownership. RATE INCREASE: A case for higher mortgage rates to cool the overheated housing market. HEALTHY CREDIT: Healthy credit is essential in the current lending environment. Here’s the score…
Good morning! Today is Monday, February 15 – President’s Day. Walmart’s vaccine rollout will target small towns. A major winter storm is spreading snow and ice from the Midwest, South, and now sweeping into the Northeast. Scientists accidentally discovered new animals a half mile under Antarctica ice. And in mortgage and housing news … FANNIE MAE INCOME: Fannie Mae released its 2020 financial results, reporting $11.8 billion in net income for the year and $4.6 billion in the fourth quarter. HUD POLICY: Opinion – A historic housing crisis has America in its grip. Can Marcia Fudge save the day? NONQUALIFYING MORTGAGES: Good news for self-employed borrowers. Nonqualifying mortgages are staging a comeback. REDLINING: The acting CFPB chief is signaling a tougher stance against redlining. FREDDIE MAC LEADERSHIP: Freddie…
Good morning! Today is Friday, February 12. Contracts with Pfizer and Moderna require each company to provide an additional 100 million vaccine doses. President Biden’s 100-day plan to reopen schools meets with a messy reality of teachers’ unions holding firm on their demands for new safety measures and vaccinations. The CDC is considering classifying color-coded zones for school reopenings. And in mortgage and housing news … RATES STEADY: For the second week in a row, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage average didn’t move at all, according to Freddie Mac’s weekly Primary Mortgage Market Survey. FREDDIE RESULTS: Freddie Mac announced net income of $7.3 billion for 2020, up $100 million from the year before as the housing market surged amid pandemic-induced record low interest rates. FAIR HOUSING…
