In case you hadn’t noticed, mortgage lending volume is off about 20% from a year ago, with refinances down somewhere around 35%. To add insult to injury, profit margins for traditional mortgage lenders reported for the fourth quarter of 2017 are less than half of that in Q4 2016; $237 versus $535. We all knew this was coming. But, did…
It was a ground-breaking movie – Where the Boys Are. In 1984, they remade the 1960 Connie Francis’ movie, about four college girls who decided they wanted some fun, adventure, and romance. To find it, they had to go where the boys were – spring break in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. This remake was shown as something new for the day. Girls stepping…
Times they are a changing in the mortgage industry. At this year’s Conference of Regional MBAs held in Atlantic City, just about every session and speaker discussed the changes which have taken place, are taking place, and still to come in the mortgage industry. Bright and early on Wednesday, the residential segment of the conference began with Barry Habib, CEO…
As we know by now, a strong purchase market for housing is forecasted for the next few years. After such a long period of refinances, this presents some real challenges for Realtors, lenders, and consumers. The recent onslaught of refi’s has removed many homes from the market. This results in a rise in home prices leaving fewer affordable homes for…
Fannie gave us a little ray of hope by adjusting their first quarter origination volume upward; albeit a little late in the quarter. They’re estimating total volume at about $384 billion, up from $369 billion. The breakdown is: $217 billion in Purchase business $167 billion in refi’s However, they also adjusted their forecast for the remainder of the year…
As my dear departed Grandfather would say when things got tough, “Things, they not looka so good!” He didn’t speak English very well, but he sure had a firm grasp of the obvious. Seems lenders are taking a page out of his book. The most recent Fannie Mae Lender Sentiment Survey revealed that mortgage lenders are reporting a negative profit…
