Fri, Nov 22 2024, 11:48 AM
Want a house for a dollar? Italy has them… figure out the impact on comps for appraisals! To the best of my knowledge, my cat Myrtle never lived in It...
Thu, Nov 21 2024, 11:55 AM
This morning I head from Columbia, MO (“COMO”… big thumb’s up for Sophia’s Italian) to Kansas City for the KC MBA luncheon. I have seen very few Tesla...
Wed, Nov 20 2024, 11:48 AM
“I thought swimming with dolphins was expensive until I went swimming with sharks. It cost me an arm and a leg.” Through the wonders of modern air tra...
Tue, Nov 19 2024, 11:13 AM
“What do giraffes and zoning regulations have in common? They both don't exist in Texas.” I am not heading there for a while, but instead head to St. ...
Mon, Nov 18 2024, 11:44 AM
“I didn't make it to the gym again today. That makes five years in a row.” I did, however, make it to the aerodrome over the weekend, which involved t...
Fri, Nov 15 2024, 11:48 AM
"To the person who stole my glasses. I will find you; I have contacts." Here in Cleveland, much of the mortgage talk involves conjecture about where w...
Thu, Nov 14 2024, 12:08 PM
Demographics matter. Although I am sending today’s Commentary out from a Dunkin’ near Columbus, Ohio, yesterday I found myself visiting a supposedly h...
Wed, Nov 13 2024, 11:45 AM
“When I was young man, I met a girl in Tennessee who turned out to be a moonshiner’s daughter. That was a long time ago. But I love her still.” The Co...
Tue, Nov 12 2024, 11:41 AM
What would lenders do without telephones and phone calls? In 1947 area codes were created by AT&T. Metropolitan areas were given low numbers so that p...
Fri, Nov 8 2024, 12:10 PM
Many believe, and with good reason, that there will be some turnover at the CFPB coming up. Here are the pay grades if you’re interested in a job. (I ...
Thu, Nov 7 2024, 10:20 AM
You knew that Minnesota has 90,000 miles of shoreline, more than California, Florida, and Hawaii combined, right? Here at Servion’s Fusion 24 event in...
Wed, Nov 6 2024, 11:24 AM
I went to a Vikings game with a friend and decided I wanted a drink. I wanted the big soda pop, but when I saw the price, I decided… A Minnesota will ...
Tue, Nov 5 2024, 11:46 AM
I think that I read somewhere that there’s an election today (in addition to the Boeing strike ending). Certainly, the sun will come up tomorrow, and ...
Mon, Nov 4 2024, 11:50 AM
Someone’s making money out there, right? Freddie and Fannie continue to earn billions, with a good chunk coming from g-fee income, and see hundreds of...
Fri, Nov 1 2024, 11:21 AM
Not only do most states “gain an hour” Sunday, but I have good news for all my readers. I am getting stronger with age. I can now lift $100 worth of g...
Thu, Oct 31 2024, 11:45 AM
I recently went to my favorite local Mexican restaurant, and there was a sign in the window, “Sorry, we are closed due to short staff.” Someone had wr...
Wed, Oct 30 2024, 11:58 AM
As I head from Denver to the Bay Area early this morning, I thought to myself, “Why are corn farmers great at eavesdropping? Because they have ears ev...
Tue, Oct 29 2024, 11:46 AM
Heard in the hallways here at the MBA’s annual convention in December. “I wonder if the MBA’s volume estimate of $2.3 trillion for 2025 includes all o...
Mon, Oct 28 2024, 11:47 AM
Thousands of lenders and vendors braved the gate lice to fly to Denver (the term for people who crowd around the gate at an airport, sometimes in an a...
Fri, Oct 25 2024, 11:41 AM
“A herd of cows broke into a Colorado weed farm. Police and animal control are on the scene, and the steaks are high.” This will be the last day in th...
Thu, Oct 24 2024, 11:09 AM
Were solid, rounded airplane windows considered “innovation”? Indiana’s Carol K. has the answer. There’s always innovation, in this case entertaining....
Wed, Oct 23 2024, 11:49 AM
“The coast is clear,” and today I head to the Palm Beach Mortgage Professionals Expo hosted by FAMP’s Broward-Gold Coast Chapter. Legal issues will be...
Tue, Oct 22 2024, 11:54 AM
“An eye for an eye, Tooth for a tooth. Vote for me and I'll set you free! Rap on, brother, rap on. Well, the only person talking about loving thy brot...
Mon, Oct 21 2024, 11:46 AM
Sports have a lot of fans, and heroes. With only 10 days until Halloween, what a great time of year to be a sports fanatic. You never have to leave yo...
Fri, Oct 18 2024, 12:14 PM
A while back I parked my car outside a government office building in Sacramento. "Sir, you can't park here," said a cop. "This is where our politician...
Thu, Oct 17 2024, 11:43 AM
Today would have been the 65th birthday of comedian Norm Macdonald. And while that may make your head shake, here’s something else that definitely wil...
Wed, Oct 16 2024, 11:46 AM
An attorney will tell you, “Never miss a good chance to shut up.” Today I head to the Portland/Vancouver area for a few days with Banner Bank. Oregon ...
Tue, Oct 15 2024, 11:44 AM
Some things aren’t what they seem to be. What about places… what if you moved and your new home wasn’t how it originally seemed to be? There is a tren...
Fri, Oct 11 2024, 11:48 AM
Preparing for the next hurricane in Florida? Or Louisiana? Or Texas? Call this really smart or really humorous, it’s up to you. (And no, I don’t know ...
Thu, Oct 10 2024, 12:52 PM
Hey, I like a good raccoon swarm as much as the next guy, but you couldn’t pay me to walk out there in that yard. Speaking of pay, a common question i...
Wed, Oct 9 2024, 11:39 AM
Should it concern us that, a few days ago, it was pointed out that from now until Nov. 26, there’s at least one football game on TV to watch every day...
Tue, Oct 8 2024, 11:51 AM
Here in Philadelphia and many other parts of the nation, the weather is autumnal. But that doesn’t matter for the thousands upon thousands of uninsure...
Mon, Oct 7 2024, 11:43 AM
Yesterday I flew west to Philadelphia (“Philly”) to spend some time with the Spring EQ sales team. It is a well-known fact that the process of boardin...
Fri, Oct 4 2024, 11:56 AM
As Maui grapples with rebuilding, and parts of the Southeast deal with continued rescue or recovery issues, where would our lives be without some levi...
Thu, Oct 3 2024, 11:53 AM
Tis the time of year when pumpkins have magically appeared in bins outside supermarkets and on porches. Which state grows the most? It’s hard to beat ...
Wed, Oct 2 2024, 11:43 AM
Whether it was Richey May’s lock picking kit, Maxwell’s milk frother, Total Expert’s socks, or Byte’s locally made sweet treats, there was plenty of v...
Tue, Oct 1 2024, 11:42 AM
We find ourselves in the 4th quarter of 2024. October is here! Do you want to beat the rush for buying the Halloween candy that’s most popular in your...
Mon, Sep 30 2024, 11:43 AM
Well, this is the week that many have been waiting for: Fat Bear Week! The nearly 600 mortgage folks here in Las Vegas at the ACUMA event can talk abo...
Fri, Sep 27 2024, 11:49 AM
“Who was the first person that used technology? Moses. He had two tablets that were connected to the cloud.” Technology is a two-edged sword. On the o...
Thu, Sep 26 2024, 11:39 AM
We’re all following Hurricane Helene and its impact on lives and housing stock in the news. Will Rogers famously said, “All I know is what I read in t...
Wed, Sep 25 2024, 11:54 AM
“My people skills are fine. It's my tolerance for idiots that needs work.” Fortunately, in our business we have very, very few of those, and certainly...
Tue, Sep 24 2024, 11:59 AM
Today I leave Illinois, with the world’s largest corn maze, and head to Nebraska, with the world’s largest ball of stamps, things that make life inter...
Mon, Sep 23 2024, 11:39 AM
Summer has officially come and gone; the autumn equinox was yesterday. Columbus Day, Halloween, Veteran’s Day, and Thanksgiving are in the coming mont...
Fri, Sep 20 2024, 11:48 AM
“Someone asked me if I had plans for the fall. It took me a moment to realize they meant ‘autumn’ and not the fall of civilization.” The Autumn solsti...
Thu, Sep 19 2024, 11:58 AM
“A Native American, pirate, and Frenchman walk into a bar. The bartender says, ‘Gentlemen, hau, arrrrrrr, oui, today?’” No one has to sound out “s-u-m...
Wed, Sep 18 2024, 11:53 AM
“Q: What does a dyslexic pirate say? A: RRRRRRA!” Humor aside, many in our industry have faced adversity, dyslexia and more, and I received this note:...
Tue, Sep 17 2024, 11:43 AM
Does it give you a sense of permanency if you think about how you’re looking at the same moon as pirates did 300-400 years ago? There’s a lunar eclips...
Mon, Sep 16 2024, 11:48 AM
The Pirate goes to the dermatologist and says, “Arrg, I got moles.” The dermatologist says, “Don’t worry, they’re benign.” The Pirate replies, “Arrg, ...
Fri, Sep 13 2024, 11:44 AM
“I pay you to handle my loan and give me a good program with a competitive rate, not predict things you can’t.” At a recent event, a top originator to...
Thu, Sep 12 2024, 11:52 AM
“Honey, what did you do today?” “Well…” People do some cockamamie stuff against all odds. What are the odds of a lender or LO retaining their client a...
