Good morning! Today is Wednesday, April 22. A 3.7 magnitude earthquake shook parts of L.A. The Senate passed a $480 billion aid package to help small businesses and hospitals to blunt the economic crisis caused by the coronavirus. Netflix has added 16 million new subscribers.
And in mortgage and housing news …
FOUR-MONTH FORBEARANCE: The Federal Housing Finance Agency announced that mortgage lenders will only have to cover four months of missed payments from borrowers under forbearance during the coronavirus pandemic. Is a Fed liquidity facility next?
HOME SALES: Existing home sales fell in March amid the coronavirus outbreak, though overall sales were up slightly from a year ago, the National Association of Realtors announced.
FLYING W RECOVERY: The housing market recovery is projected to look like a “flying W” – an initial sharp drop this spring, followed by a rebound in the summer, another downturn in the fall and finally a solid road to recovery by next spring, according to a forecast released by real estate investor Haus.
JUMBO LOANS: Wealthy borrowers are getting the cold shoulder from mortgage lenders, who are seeing jumbo loans as risky bets.
LENDING VOID: Some banks are pulling back from mortgage lending. Here is what it could mean for the housing market.
REASONABLE ROLLOUT: A New York real estate brokerage CEO offers ideas for how the real estate business might resume safely and profitably.
ADDRESSING RISKS: What can the federal government due to address mortgage market contraction.
MISSED MORTGAGE: The first steps to take if you can’t pay your mortgage.
VIRTUAL APPRAISALS: New technologies bring properties to appraisers, providing a host of data that can help generate accurate appraisals.