Good Morning! Today is Friday, March 3. The House Ethics Committee is investigating whether Representative George Santos committed financial crimes or engaged in sexual misconduct. Tennessee is banning drag performances on public property. South Carolina lawyer Alex Murdaugh was found guilty of murdering his wife and son in 2021.
The Mortgage Note Reports
Rates Respond To Inflation Data: Mortgage rates once again increased to 6.65% as new data suggests inflation is sticking harder than previously thought.
Lending Innovations: The FinTech company Knock is partnering with lenders and real estate agents to offer homeowners a chance to leverage the equity in their property so they can buy another home before selling their current one. Editor Kimberley Haas sat down with CEO Sean Black to learn more.
MORGAN For You: Sun West Mortgage has created an AI personal assistant called MORGAN, and released a webinar series to teach real estate professionals how to use it.
ICYMI: More people in business, including those in lending, are returning to in-person work after the pandemic. As the retail giant Walmart makes news with their plans to close underperforming locations, urban designers see an opportunity to discuss repurposing retail properties.
TMN Presents: The Mortgage Meltdown Meter, a collection of articles from the market correction, updated daily. Click here to stay on top of the changing landscape.
In other mortgage and housing news…
Hot Data, Higher Rates: One Fed official said progress on bringing down inflation may have stalled and the central bank may need to raise rates even further.
Originations Sink Again: Total U.S. loan originations fell for the seventh straight quarter, down 24% from Q3 2022 and 55% from Q4 2021.
“Half As Many Homes”: Affordability tanked in 2022, with just 1 in 5 home listings being affordable for the typical U.S. household, down from 2 in 5 in 2021.
Citigroup Layoffs: Citigroup said it is laying off employees in multiple departments, including its mortgage lending arm, buts the cuts amount to less than 1% of its staff.
Overseas Buyers Are Back: Foreign buyers, who largely disappeared from the U.S. market during Covid, are returning in force to the housing market.
“Return To Normal Growth”: An expert panel polled by Zillow said prices will slide 1.6% in 2023 but growth over the following four years is expected to average out.