Good morning! Today is Thursday, January 14. Ten House Republicans joined Democrats to impeach President Trump on charges of “incitement of an insurrection,” making him the first president in U.S. history to be impeached twice. Washington D.C.’s Metro public transportation system will close 13 stations for a week amid threats of inauguration violence. The National Guard asks people to stop sending donations, after photos of National Guardsmen sleeping on the floor of the Capitol spread on social media.
And in mortgage and housing news …
INAUGURATION BOOKINGS: Vacation rental company Airbnb announced that it is cancelling all booked reservations in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area during Inauguration week. The online rental site also will take no new reservations in the Capitol region during that week.
MORTGAGE APPS: Mortgage applications jumped 16.7 percent during the first week of 2021 to their highest levels since March, according to the latest report released by the Mortgage Bankers Association.
NEW CONGRESS: New Senate Banking chairman Sherrod Brown plans to place greater focus on housing issues.
GSE FINAL ACT: The Trump administration is poised to unveil last-minute changes to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac that would allow the mortgage giants to retain significantly more capital, while leaving many of the thorniest issues on releasing the companies from federal control to President-elect Joe Biden.
FORBEARANCE REFINANCE: Can you refinance a mortgage while in forbearance?
2021 HOMEBUYING: Four reasons people are buying homes in 2021.
FAST-GROWING NICHE: The remote-work phenomenon is creating fresh demand for furnished housing on a short-term basis, a fast-growing niche that many property startups and their venture-capital backers are rushing to fill.
REFINANCING: Why are mortgage refinance rates higher than home purchase rates?
FANNIE MAE MULTI-FAMILY: Fannie Mae’s multifamily business was tallied at $367 billion as of the third quarter of 2020 — a roughly 11.2 percent jump year over year — and it provided a record $70 billion in financing in support of the multifamily market in 2019, in line with its loan purchasing caps set by its regulator, the Federal Housing Finance Agency.
CREDIT UNIONS: Massachusetts’ credit unions no longer have to abide by a 100-mile limit when issuing mortgages, thanks to a new state law modernizing credit union regulations.