Good Morning! Today is Thursday, March 28. Divers recovered the bodies of two workers after the Baltimore bridge collapse, but four others remain missing. Former Democratic Senator Joe Lieberman died at 82. Disney ended its legal battle with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis over resort development.
The Mortgage Note Reports
Serving Servicers: The CEO of workflow automation company Clarifire says she is trying to help the mortgage industry modernize by making it easy for servicers to adopt technology they can manage from the front end.
Leadership Change: Regions Bank promoted Katie Such to Head of Affordable Housing as Rob Chiles is set to retire.
Pending Home Sales: Pending home sales increased in February as inventory loosened up and job gains positioned more Americans to buy.
Listen Up: Spring is here and the home selling season is getting underway. Writer Nicole Murray spoke with real estate professionals and recent buyers to see what they think about the current market for our latest podcast.
In other mortgage and housing news…
Company News: Planet Home Lending hired Andy Insua as Regional Sales Manager for the Southeast; Ally Bank named Michael G. Rhodes as its CEO.
Local-Level Victories: Federal action won’t make a huge difference in America’s affordable housing crisis, but cities and states are solving it themselves.
Tough Times Continue: Affordability improved slightly in Q1 2024 but buying a home remains difficult for most Americans, ATTOM reports.
Starting Point: First-time buyers must earn nearly twice as much as before the pandemic to afford a starter home.
“Missing A Crucial Point”: Mortgage rates are expected to fall this year, but that might make homebuying tougher as demand spikes.