The MBA’s Mortgage Credit Availability Index (MCAI) increased for the fourth consecutive month in December. The MCIA is a barometer on the availability of mortgage credit using certain guidelines from institutional mortgage purchasers. With a base of 100, the higher the index value the more available the credit. A lower value indicates a tightening of mortgage credit standards. The MCAI…
Local boy makes good. According to Jerry Schiano, CEO of Plymouth Meeting, Pennsylvania’s, New Penn Financial, the weather may change a little when the Millennials start buying homes. The change? As he puts it, a humongous hurricane of air sweeping across the country caused by the simultaneous exhaling of tens of thousands of business people dependent upon the sale of…
With the New Year comes the rise in interest rates and the decline of the refinance. That means that lenders need to concentrate their attention on Realtors and Builders for new business in the New Year. Hopefully, originators remember how to do that. This brings us back to good old customer service. Customers, the Realtors, builders, and buyers, require attention…
According to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), borrowers are doing a much better job of keeping their mortgages current and staying away from foreclosure. That’s great news for the banks that participated in the OCC survey and that service these loans. The report also indicates that foreclosures have declined in the past year by about 1.6%.…
If you’re football fan, you saw a great college football game that decided the National Champion on Monday night. Alabama is considered to be the best college football team in the nation. Some believe they are good enough to compete with some pro teams. Don’t tell that to Clemson. They beat Alabama 35-31 in a hard-fought game that went down…
The New Year is starting out strong with housing having regained just about all its value lost in the 2008 crash. According to Zillow’s data, the total value of the U.S. housing stock grew to $29.6 trillion, a record high. That’s a $1.6 trillion increase in home value appreciation. That’s good. During 2016, renters paid about $478 billion toward their…
