Delinquencies Down Nearly 40% YOY

The delinquency rate nationwide dropped to 2.80% in April, as overall delinquencies fell almost 40% YOY, according to Black Knight’s “first look” at its April 2022 month-end mortgage performance stats. The numbers reflect the mortgage market’s continued recovery from pandemic impacts. Prepayment activity dropped 19.1% from March and is down 61.8% YOY due to rapidly increasing interest rates. Rates averaged 5.25% last week. The number of borrowers who are a single payment overdue rose 7.9% month-over-month, which Black Knight says is typical of the season. That increase was offset by improvements among more seriously delinquent borrowers. The volume of borrowers three or more months past due fell by 8% from the month prior. Serious delinquencies are down between 6% and…

Buyside Rebrands To ‘Percy’ After $10M Funding Round

Real estate seller leads provider Buyside gained $10 million in equity funding and is rebranding to Percy, the company announced in a press release. Percy’s AI, which identifies consumer intent to give agents and brokers the ability to engage their consumers, now gives that same power to mortgage lenders. “Buyside aggregates the activity your buyers generate online, using it to power actionable insights and intelligent marketing tools that help brokers: capture seller leads, win more listings and close more transaction sides in house,” its website reads. Its funding round included fintech and real estate companies such as Howard Hanna Real Estate Services and Leading Real Estate Companies of the World.  Percy will use the investment for marketing, sales, and systems…

Housing Market Cooling In Some Parts Of The Country After A Wild Pandemic Ride

By TYRONE TOWNSEND As the spring selling season continues, those in the industry are noticing that the housing market in parts of the country is beginning to cool after a wild ride during the pandemic. Bidding wars and all-cash bids were prevalent due to rising housing prices and low availability. As more investors invaded the market, millions of average Americans were left on the sidelines, unable to compete. The housing market is already beginning to cool but despite this fact, respite for homeowners – particularly first-time purchasers – is unlikely as the Federal Reserve continues to boost interest rates to battle inflation, driving up mortgage rates. According to Realtor.com’s Monthly Home Trends Report, housing inventory in the United States was…

Rick Hogle Named CRO Of Cherry Creek Mortgage

Rick Hogle has joined Cherry Creek Mortgage as its chief revenue officer, the company announced in a press release. “I’m delighted and honored to bring both my skills and perspectives to Cherry Creek’s thriving retail organization,” Hogle said. “When you bring together great people, empower them with a common mission, and equip them with the tools, knowledge, and processes for success, the sky’s the limit.” Hogle brings 21 years of industry experience to the position. He previously served as a branch manager, national sales manager, director of operations, chief operating officer, and chief strategic officer for Supreme Lending. He also held leadership positions at New Century Mortgage. In his new role, Hogle will oversee the growth and development of retail…

Fannie Lowers Home Sale and Origination Expectations For 2022/23

Fannie Mae’s Economic and Strategic Research (ESR) Group has downwardly revised its full-year 2022 real GDP expectations, along with anticipated home sales and mortgage originations, according to the group’s latest forecast. They now expect full-year real GDP to grow at a reduced rate of 1.3%, a 0.8% decrease from their previous prediction, citing inflation, rising interest rates, and “a slowdown of global economic growth.” The forecast also predicts that Q2 2022 will see growth rebound to 1.6%, a reaction to Q1’s economic contraction of 1.4%. “Financial conditions have tightened significantly, and the economy is slowing faster than previously expected as markets adjust to the Federal Reserve’s tightening guidance,” said Doug Duncan, Fannie Mae Senior Vice President and Chief Economist. Mortgage…

Builder Confidence Falls, Signaling A Market Slowdown

Builder confidence fell eight points in May, according to the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI). The HMI registered a reading of 69 in May, a significant drop from April. This is the fifth consecutive month of decline and the lowest reading since June 2020. The low reading suggests that the housing market is slowing thanks to affordability challenges. “The housing market is facing growing challenges. Building material costs are up 19% from a year ago, in less than three months mortgage rates have surged to a 12-year high and, based on current affordability conditions, less than 50% of new and existing home sales are affordable for a typical family,”  said NAHB Chief Economist Robert…

Loan Apps Tank By 11% After Slight Increase Last Week

After ticking up 2% last week, mortgage loan application volume tanked by 11% last week, the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) weekly survey shows. The adjusted Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, fell by 11%. The adjusted purchase index fell by 12%, while the unadjusted purchase index fell by 12% as well and was 15% lower YOY. The refinance index fell 10% and was down 76% YOY. Refinances made up 33% of total applications, up from 32.4%.  “Mortgage applications decreased for the first time in three weeks, as mortgage rates – despite declining last week – remained over two percentage points higher than a year ago and close to the highest levels since 2009. For borrowers looking…

Morning Roundup (5/17/2022) – Commercial Real Estate, Fraud Risks

Good Morning! Today is Tuesday, May 17. The gunman who killed 10 people in Buffalo was able to buy an assault-style weapon despite having been held for a mental health evaluation last year. Ukraine began evacuating its fighters from Mariupol, a sign that Russia had won control of the city. The Biden administration lifted some sanctions on Cuba, including expanding flights. The Mortgage Note Reports Commercial Real Estate: Writer Chuck Green reports that commercial and industrial spaces are doing well. Even retail is making a comeback. Fraud Alert: Ten of the 15 metros with the highest fraud risk saw an increase compared to last quarter, while a majority of U.S. firms said that the pandemic increased application fraud across channels, not just for online and mobile systems. Forbearance Volume…

Share Of Forborne Loans Falls To 0.94% Of Servicers’ Portfolios

The number of loans in forbearance fell 11% in April from 1.05% of servicers’ portfolio volume to 0.94%, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Loan Monitoring Survey. MBA now estimates that 470,000 homeowners remain in forbearance plans. Of Fannie and Freddie loans, the number in forbearance dropped 6 basis points to 0.43%. Ginnie Mae loans saw an 11 basis point drop to 1.49%, while PLS and portfolio loans saw a 29 point decline to 2.15%. “With the number of borrowers in forbearance decreasing to less than half a million, the pace of monthly forbearance exits reached its lowest level since MBA started tracking exits in June 2020,” said Marina Walsh, CMB, MBA’s Vice President of Industry Analysis. “Servicers are…

Fraud Risk Is Up Due To Challenging Market Conditions

Ten of the 15 metros with the highest fraud risk saw an increase in risk compared to last quarter, CoreLogic reported in its Quarterly Mortgage Fraud Brief. The report analyzes the metros with the highest mortgage fraud risk in order to get a clear picture of trends found in residential mortgage loan applications processed by LoanSafe Fraud Manager. CoreLogic’s National Mortgage Application Fraud Risk Index was flat in Q1 2022, falling slightly from 138 in Q4 2021 to 137 this quarter. Year-over-year, the trend is up 15% at 119. The Poughkeepsie metro area topped the list for highest fraud risk, with risk up 16% quarter-over-quarter. It’s followed by the Miami, San Jose, Las Vegas, New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Stockton,…