Good morning! Today is Tuesday, August 4. Coronavirus cases are increasing in the Midwest. Hurricane Isaias makes landfall in southern North Carolina and is chugging up the East Coast today. Major League Baseball postponed its “Field of Dreams” game after 13 Cardinals players and staffers test positive for COVID-19.
And in mortgage and housing news …
BORROWER SATISFACTION: With the economy in shambles and millions of Americans struggling to pay their mortgages, borrowers’ satisfaction with their loan servicers actually has increased this year, according to the J.D. Power 2020 U.S. Primary Mortgage Servicer Satisfaction Study.
FORBEARANCE NUMBERS: The share of US mortgages in forbearance dropped for the seventh straight week, the Mortgage Bankers Association announced.
HE’S BACK? If you thought the suspended Association of Independent Mortgage Experts Chairman Anthony Casa would dial things back in the wake of sending lewd video texts about a rival’s wife, well … he seems to be sending a different message.
EXTENDING RELIEF: Top GOP lawmaker urges regulators to extend relief for renters and banks.
WORLD’S BACKUP LENDER: The coronavirus has supercharged the Federal Reserve as the backup lender to the world, lending massively to foreign counterparts.
SMALL-DOLLAR MORTGAGES: Affordable homes can be hard to buy because lenders don’t make much money on small loans. But programs to encourage homeownership can help buyers build wealth.
CFPB LAWSUIT: The National Community Reinvestment Corporation, the city of Toledo, and a group of community organizations represented by Public Citizen filed a lawsuit against the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau to overturn a new rule that exempts thousands of financial institutions from reporting data that is key to uncovering housing discrimination.
REFINANCING COSTS: The average closing costs for a mortgage refinance are about $5,000, though costs vary according to the size of your loan and the state and county where you live, according to data from Freddie Mac.
HIRING: AmeriSave Mortgage Corp. plans to hire hundreds and open an office in Miami.
HOUSING MARKET RISKS: A Nobel laureate warns that suburbs and fashionable exurbs are hot, but don’t forget that home prices have fallen before.