Housing Wire

MARCH 5, 2025

According to the MBA, rates for Federal Housing Administration (FHA) loans dipped to 6.42%, while refinance activity posted its fastest pace since October 2024. The move in government refinances was driven by a 75% increase in VA loans, which have been prone to large changes in recent months. More renovations?

Loan Officer 266

Loan Officer Loans VA loan FHA loan 266

Housing Wire

JUNE 9, 2025

Unlike the pre-2008 era, stricter lending standards and robust regulations have kept mortgage delinquency rates low, significantly lowering the odds of a catastrophic collapse. For Ginnie Mae loans, which often serve lower-income and first-time borrowers, DTIs have surged to 45.1%, the highest since 2008 1. The 2025 U.S.

Marketing 437

Marketing Debt-to-income ratio Fixed-rate mortgage Loans 437

Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 27, 2024

wholesale lender United Wholesale Mortgage (UWM) has taken another aggressive move related to its product set, underscoring its strong commitment to government-backed loans. On Wednesday, the company announced the removal of all loan-level pricing adjustments (LLPAs) on government loans, albeit with some limitations.

Loans 397

Loans Finance Mortgages VA loan 397

Housing Wire

MAY 19, 2025

You’ve lowered the MIP; you’re making that mortgage insurance for that high-LTV loan cheaper. “Builders are doing a lot more of these buydown loans, so they’re able to sacrifice a little on the loan because they can make up for it on the home price,” Curro said. It was a more affordable mortgage.”

Loans 323

Loans Mortgages Banks Finance 323

Housing Wire

DECEMBER 4, 2024

Purchase loan activity drove total applications higher last week, which included an adjustment for the Thanksgiving holiday. Rates for 30-year jumbo loans (balances above $766,550) decreased by 12 bps and averaged 6.85%. In 2025, jumbo loans will increase to a minimum size of $806,501 — a 5.2% in the prior week.

Mortgages 383

Mortgages VA loan FHA loan Loans 383

Housing Wire

MARCH 25, 2021

Do I need to pay off my student loans before buying my first home? What it really comes down to is whether or not you feel comfortable paying a mortgage (and all the other fun expenses that come with having a home), while also paying off student loans. For example, a conventional loan lets you put as little as 3% down.

Debt-to-income ratio 500

Debt-to-income ratio Loans FHA loan Finance 500

Housing Wire

APRIL 10, 2023

After four years of Congress hiking Veterans Administration (VA) so-called “Bluewater Navy” mortgage loan fees as an offset to pay for other critical veterans’ benefits, Congress has finally let those excessive VA mortgage loan fees expire. Mortgage loan fees should not be higher than needed to safely run government-backed lending.

Loans 397

Loans FHA loan Mortgages VA loan 397

Housing Wire

AUGUST 15, 2022

In the face of a declining mortgage market and heightened regulatory scrutiny, Wells Fargo , the country’s largest depository mortgage lender by volume, is planning for a smaller footprint in correspondent lending and third-party servicing business. The post Wells Fargo to shutter correspondent lending?

Lending 370

Lending FHA loan Banks Finance 370

Housing Wire

OCTOBER 30, 2023

loanDepot has rolled out a new down payment assistance program for Federal Housing Administration (FHA) loan borrowers that enables them to put zero money down upfront. The program is available nationwide through the retail channel for first-time and repeat homebuyers applying for FHA 30-year, fixed-rate purchase loans.

FHA loan 473

FHA loan Loans Lending Finance 473

Housing Wire

JUNE 5, 2023

Jorden Brok and Brett Lotsoff are producing area managers and SVPs of mortgage lending at Revolution Mortgage and are tasked with expanding the company’s footprint in the greater Chicago area. Revolution, on the other hand, has been expanding its footprint by scooping up top loan officers in local markets.

Loan Officer 384

Loan Officer Loans Mortgages FHA loan 384

Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 29, 2023

Government-owned corporation Ginnie Mae announced on Wednesday that it has revised its definition for high-balance loans, conforming to new limits announced earlier this week by the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), according to All Participants Memorandum (APM) 23-13. Virgin Islands, the one-unit property limit is ​$1,149,825​​.

Loans 418

Loans FHA loan Principal Finance 418

Housing Wire

SEPTEMBER 29, 2020

You’ve probably staffed up on loan officers equipped to handle this influx, and you may be shunning riskier, less immediately gratifying business. Certainly, devote resources to expanding your refi capacity, but also devote smaller teams to tougher loan types — first-time homebuyers, for example. Don’t just let your company eat cake.

Lending 432

Lending Loan Officer Branding Loans 432

Housing Wire

FEBRUARY 15, 2024

Department of Veteran Affairs (VA) loans through its Tinman platform. We were focused on being able to take a consumer all the way through on our technology platform for just the conventional loans, and we achieved that milestone back in the summer of 2023. VA loans are 12% of the mortgage market,” Garg said. “VA Eligible U.S.

VA loan 408

VA loan Loans Loan Officer FHA loan 408

Housing Wire

MARCH 13, 2023

Rate and affordability pressures continue to challenge purchase lending, driving homebuyers to alternative loan products. ” The share of locks with adjustable rates rose in February to 10.3%, while nonconforming loans – consisting of 12.2% of the total loan product mix — picked up share.

Loans 370

Loans Mortgages VA loan FHA loan 370

Housing Wire

JUNE 11, 2024

Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has terminated the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) direct endorsement approval for Open Mortgage in Iowa. “HUD Most of its loans during the past year were in Kansas (12.5%), Mississippi (11.4%) and Florida (9.7%). Iowa was responsible for 3.4% of the total, Modex data shows.

FHA loan 449

FHA loan Mortgages Loan Officer Loans 449

Housing Wire

DECEMBER 23, 2024

The coalition includes the American Bankers Association , Center for Responsible Lending , Housing Policy Council , Mortgage Bankers Association, National Consumer Law Center and National Mortgage Servicing Association. The draft includes standalone partial claims, a 40-year loan modification and a payment supplement partial claim.

Mortgages 384

Mortgages Lending Loans As-is 384

Housing Wire

DECEMBER 3, 2023

Loans in active foreclosure inched up to 217,000, but remained more than 25% below pre-pandemic levels. About 70% of loans currently three or more payments past due are protected from foreclosure by ongoing loss mitigation efforts. In 2024, roughly 75% of originations expected to come from purchase loans. for VA loans.

Equity 441

Equity VA loan FHA loan Mortgages 441

Housing Wire

AUGUST 2, 2024

Prospective borrowers with strong credit are locking in mortgages this week at the lowest rates in more than a year, loan officers and lending executives told HousingWire on Friday. Indeed, one West Coast LO told HousingWire that he quoted a borrower a 5.75% rate on a 30-year FHA loan for a $500,000 Southern California home purchase.

Mortgages 504

Mortgages FHA loan Loans Loan Officer 504

Housing Wire

OCTOBER 9, 2024

decline in purchase loan demand. Conventional loan refinances, which tend to have larger balances than government loans and hence are more responsive for a given change in mortgage rates, fell to a greater extent over the week.” MBA data showed that government lending continues to represent a steady share of the mortgage market.

VA loan 428

VA loan Mortgages FHA loan Loans 428

Housing Wire

JANUARY 4, 2023

With a focus on purchase mortgages through referral sources, Reich aims to close $1 billion in loan origination volume in 2023 through his division alone. In addition to offering borrowers FHA loans, conventional purchase mortgages and refis, the lender specializes in retail channel construction loans, according to the firm. “We

Mortgages 496

Mortgages FHA loan Loan Officer Construction 496

Housing Wire

JANUARY 31, 2023

Scott Miller, a former mortgage loan originator at Sprout Mortgage , knew the clock was ticking when the non-qualified mortgage (non-QM) lender abruptly closed doors in July 2022. In turn, thousands of loan originators could soon be looking for a new lender to hang their license. They weren’t so small that they couldn’t handle us.”

Loans 397

Loans Mortgages Loan Officer Pre-approval 397

Housing Wire

JUNE 12, 2023

Today, nearly nine out of every 10 mortgages originated is a purchase loan, the report notes. Overall, May was an improvement over April, but mortgage lending remains constrained. The average purchase price climbed for the sixth consecutive month in May, hitting $454,000, while the average loan amount increased to $360,000.

Loans 421

Loans Mortgages Lending As-is 421

Housing Wire

JUNE 1, 2023

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) officially implemented an updated pricing framework for Loan-Level Price Adjustments (LLPAs) in May to improve homeownership prospects for first-time homebuyers with lower income and weaker credit scores. We spoke to multiple loan officers and Washington, D.C.-based

FHA loan 370

FHA loan Loan Officer Loans Mortgages 370

Housing Wire

AUGUST 31, 2023

Mars Bank — an independent community bank in Pennsylvania — offers mortgage lending, retail and commercial banking in six locations throughout the state. million across 234 loans in the past 12 months, according to the mortgage data platform Modex. million in origination across 205 loans over the past 12 months, Modex showed.

Banks 397

Banks FHA loan Lending Equity 397

Housing Wire

OCTOBER 19, 2023

By doing a cash-out refi, she landed a $340,000 FHA loan and locked in a 6.9% We are paying off her current mortgage balance of $280,000 while maintaining more than $200,000 in home equity,” said Anderson, who runs the mortgage broker shop Rancho Capital Home Loans. Credit scores for FHA loan borrowers could go down even lower.

Mortgages 479

Mortgages FHA loan Equity Loans 479

Housing Wire

JUNE 10, 2025

Credit supply increased to its highest level since August 2022, driven by growth in the supply of both conventional and government loans, as lenders offered a greater variety of loan types to support the spring homebuying season,” Joel Kan, MBA’s vice president and deputy chief economist, said in a statement.

VA loan 202

VA loan Mortgages Loans Lending 202

Housing Wire

FEBRUARY 7, 2023

It essentially allows qualified buyers with a government loan to purchase a home by assuming responsibility for the sellers’ mortgage terms, including the current balance and interest rate. The fees are typically lower than in new loans, and no appraisal is needed. In fact, it was fairly common a few decades ago.

FHA loan 384

FHA loan Mortgages Loan Officer VA loan 384

Housing Wire

OCTOBER 23, 2020

Just before its stock debuted at a disappointing $15 a share, Guild Mortgage settled a federal lawsuit that claimed the lender knowingly breached legal requirements when it originated and underwrote FHA loans. Those loans, originated between 2007 and 2011, defaulted and led to claims to the FHA for mortgage insurance.

Mortgages 491

Mortgages FHA loan Lending Loans 491

Housing Wire

MARCH 11, 2024

for cash-out loans. Although lock counts were down on a year-over-year basis, the rate of decline is decelerating and suggests we may be nearing a floor for purchase lending in the current rate environment.” The index for Federal Housing Administration (FHA) loans rose 28 bps to 6.66%, while the U.S.

VA loan 450

VA loan FHA loan Loans Lending 450

Housing Wire

MARCH 29, 2024

The majority of consumer complaints in the mortgage arena (13,100, or 58%) were focused on conventional home loans, followed by Federal Housing Administration (FHA) loans (19%), U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) loans (9%) and home equity lines of credit, or HELOCs (6%). The penalties totaled $1.7

Mortgages 422

Mortgages VA loan FHA loan Lending 422

Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 7, 2023

In the aftermath, one of the most contentious issues in the minds of mortgage professionals is how the ruling might affect FHA and VA mortgage borrowers. FHA loans are a popular option for first-time homebuyers or those who don’t have a lot of cash saved for a down payment, because the loans require a minimum of 3.5%

VA loan 458

VA loan Agents Seller concession FHA loan 458

Housing Wire

OCTOBER 16, 2024

The locations of households that have received FHA-backed mortgages have been studied far less, HUD explained. If federal homeownership assistance programs follow national trends, we would expect FHA loans to be associated with whiter and lower-poverty census tracts.”

FHA loan 466

FHA loan Equity Loans Mortgages 466

Housing Wire

MARCH 26, 2025

United Wholesale Mortgage (UWM) announced Wednesday that it is extending its removal of Loan Level Pricing Adjustments (LLPAs) on government loans for borrowers with a FICO score of 600 and above. The program applies to Federal Housing Administration (FHA), U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) loans.

Loans 184

Loans Mortgages Finance VA loan 184

Housing Wire

SEPTEMBER 27, 2022

.” The latest layoff announcement from the country’s second-largest lender comes amid faltering home lending business. Home lending revenue dropped to $972 million in the second quarter, a sequential drop from the previous quarter’s $1.5 billion in revenue from home lending. Citi , JP Morgan Chase and U.S.

FHA loan 384

FHA loan Lending Banks Finance 384

Housing Wire

OCTOBER 11, 2024

Purchase loans (0.9%) had higher levels of risk than refinances (0.58%). CoreLogic determined that the lowest-risk applications by loan type were those from the U.S. Lending volumes remained relatively steady over the past year, which the firm tied to “continued high interest rates.” in 2024 and by 12% in 2023.

Mortgages 508

Mortgages Sales Loans Lending 508

Keeping Current Matters

MARCH 22, 2021

According to data from the most recent Origination Insight Report by Ellie Mae , the average FICO® score on closed loans reached 753 in February. As lending standards have tightened recently, many are concerned over whether or not their credit score is strong enough to qualify for a mortgage. However, that’s not always the case.

VA loan 326

VA loan FHA loan Mortgages Lending 326

Housing Wire

APRIL 10, 2023

The disproportionate surge in purchase lending pushed the refi share of the market mix down to a current cycle low of just 13%. That, combined with a recent reduction in FHA mortgage insurance premiums and a mid-month increase in the FHA-to-conforming spread, made FHA loans comparatively more attractive,” Walden said.

FHA loan 384

FHA loan Marketing Lending Mortgages 384