Not you, of course, but many other people in our biz are elderly. Sure you haven’t seen them in person in a year, but they’re there. Or they have elderly parents. Heck, is “elderly” a bad word now? Seriously, I hope everyone reading this has a long and fruitful life, and when I hit “elderly,” I hope that I’m put into this alternative living village. Speaking of lifestyles and renting, do you wonder where some of the potential inventory is going? How ‘bout to new neighborhoods that builders are building just for renters! Just like we’ve all seen salmon heading upstream into bears’ maws, and wonder how any of them make it upstream, many wonder how a house or subdivision reaches completion. Remodeling a bathroom? How long do you have to wait for a faucet? “The three main factors in the ongoing building supply shortage are an outsized demand for new products, pandemic-related struggles in manufacturing, and a concurrent demand for new homes.” Anyone working with builders or clients who are remodeling should read this article. (By the way, the audio version of today’s commentary is available here and is sponsored by Churchill Mortgage, operating in 47 states and funding $4.5 billion in 2020.)

Services and Products

LoanStream Mortgage has a huge pricing improvement on NON-QM, Conventional, and Government loans, near the top of LoanSifter! View the improved rates. LoanStream also has the best price promise running right now: we will beat the rate or price on any Non-QM/NanQ loan from any competitor for all locked loans 4/20 – 5/31, 2021. Requires a valid competitor’s rate sheet at the time of lock. Terms and conditions apply. Non-QM Best Price Promise LoanStream Wholesale - Wholesale Mortgage Lending. Count on LoanStream to help you find the right loan for your clients, whether its Non-QM, Conventional or Government, they are the one lender that can make you the one to call. Visit www.LoanStreamWholesale.com.

Learning from your past to make a better future is an old adage that can be especially useful when managing your MSR portfolio. During last year’s market volatility, MCT® reviewed MSR portfolio strategies for retaining or releasing MSRs during a volatile market. Now, MCT’s latest blog is reviewing the Top 5 Takeaways for the Bulk MSR Market: Q1 2021. In this latest post, learn how the market is shifting in 2021 along with key insights for managing your MSR portfolio. Further information is also outlined in the March 18th HousingWire webinar, Strategies for MSR Management in 2021. To make sure you are up to date on the latest MSR strategies for 2021, join MCT’s newsletter or learn more about its MSR solutions.

AFR Wholesale™ has reinstated its Conventional One-Time Close Construction-to-Permanent financing. New submissions will be accepted beginning May 3, 2021. As the housing resale shortage continues, more families may consider building a home instead. Whether the home is site-built, manufactured or modular, One-Time Close loans provide all-in-one financing that combines the cost of home construction, lot purchase/land payoff, and permanent mortgage into a single closing. This reduces time, money, and paperwork for both you and the borrower. In addition to Conventional loans, AFR offers a comprehensive suite of OTC financing, including options from FHA, VA, and USDA. What’s more, AFR provides personalized concierge service to guide originators and builders/retailers through the OTC process. Learn more today! For more information about becoming a partner, go to afrwholesale.com, email sales@afrwholesale.com, or call 1-800-375-6071.

Polly is now the industry’s first Product, Pricing & Eligibility Engine to offer fully automated lock desk functionality. The latest feature enhancement allows lenders to auto-accept locks, extensions, relocks and float downs defined by their own custom rule logic.  This functionality is the next step in Polly’s mission to provide secondary and capital markets teams with software products that optimize revenue on each loan, reduce costs by streamlining workflows, and provide data driven analytics at their fingertips. To learn more or schedule a demo email Jacob Gerson or visit www.polly.io.

FundingShield, the market leader in wire & title fraud risk management and closing agent compliance, released its Wire & Title Fraud Analytics Report for Q1 2021 showing a spike of nearly 88% increase from Q4-2020 in transactions with errors leading to wire & title fraud risks resulting in nearly 35.8% of all loans processed (over 1 in 3) having issues during Q1-2021. Ike Suri, CEO & Chairman shared “These issues highlight production errors, mis-representations, control issues and inaccurate data being transacted upon that create ideal conditions for fraudsters to prey. FundingShield helps prevent, identify and resolve these inefficiencies, threats and exposures in a timely manner so lenders can run their businesses without interruptions, reputational nightmares and/or losses by working with only valid, verified and vetted closing agents across the country.” FundingShield will be hosting a demo today at the MBA-SPRING21 Conference at 1:50pm Eastern, please join to view its solutions or email Sales@fundingshield.com.

Thoughts About Servicing

Did you start retaining servicing last year or increase the percentage you retained because it seemed like the right financial decision? If so, today you’re probably wondering, “Does it still make sense to do this?” In his article, “What’s Keeping Servicers Awake at Night?” in the just-released STRATMOR Group Insights Report, STRATMOR principal and servicing expert Seth Sprague, CMB, asks the questions and offers insight into the issues that servicers should consider in setting a servicing strategy for 2021 and beyond. Don’t miss the April issue of STRATMOR’s Insight Report.

It’s no secret that refinance retention’s critically low. In fact, recent data indicates only 18% of refinance borrowers stay with their servicer. Therefore, improving borrower recapture is probably on your to-do list. Black Knight’s Capture℠ lead analytics platform helps you identify specific loans in your portfolio or lead database that could benefit from refinancing based on equity positions, current first-lien rates, and future purchases triggered by monitoring MLS listings. The advanced solution puts near-real-time, personalized pricing scenarios within reach, so you can engage the right customers with meaningful information at the right time. Capture’s pricing capabilities are powered by the industry-leading Black Knight Optimal Blue PPE, which calculates highly accurate pricing based on borrower-specific attributes, current market conditions, and the most up-to-date market and lender specific margin structures. Join Black Knight on May 4th for the Introducing Capture: A Powerful Solution for Your Retention Challenges webinar. Register today.

Compliance and Legal Notes

The residential lending industry will always have an eye on what comes out of politicians and regulators at the national and state level. For a multi-state, or nationwide lender, the task is daunting, and the potential penalties hefty. Let’s take a random look at some news around the nation.

The CFPB issued a proposed rule and requested public comment on proposed amendments to Regulation X intended to assist borrowers affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. For example, it would establish a pre-foreclosure review period to provide an opportunity for borrowers affected by the Covid-19 pandemic to be evaluated for loss mitigation before a servicer files for foreclosure.  The pre-foreclosure review period would run until December 31, 2021, and would only apply to principal residences.

The CFPB also issued a compliance bulletin on “Supervision and Enforcement Priorities Regarding Housing Insecurity,” stating that the CFPB will be paying attention to how mortgage servicers respond to borrowers requesting loss mitigation assistance.

In MBA news, Seth Appleton, President of MISMO®, congratulated Truliant Federal Credit Union on its successful eNote transfer to the Federal Home Loan Bank (FHLB) of Atlanta as part of FHLB Atlanta’s eNote pilot program. The MERS® Registry saw a 263 percent increase in eNote registrations over the past year. All eNotes are MISMO SMART Docs® and are based on MISMO’s industry standard.

Lenders funding and/or servicing VA loans should know that VA Circular Letter 26-21-07 reaffirms the Department of Veterans Affairs commitment to helping VA borrowers experiencing financial hardship caused by COVID-19.   

First American Docutech pays attention to news, especially at the state level, in its Compliance News. Oklahoma adjusted its Uniform Consumer Credit Code dollar amounts. Arizona is amending its Revised Uniform Law on Notarial Acts. Washington posted FAQs: WA Interest Rate Lock Agreement (Cx2792) and Guarantees. New Mexico enacted Revised Uniform Law on Notarial Acts. Virginia amended its electronic notarization requirements, and West Virginia enacted RON legislation

On March 16, 2021, Ohio’s Governor DeWine signed a new law reducing the statute of limitations for mortgage foreclosures from 8 years to 6 years. If you have any questions or would like to discuss this or other foreclosure or bankruptcy-related matters in Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky, or Michigan. Contact George Caballero, Esq.  at george@georgecaballero.com to arrange a call with Daniel A. Cox, Partner at Wood + Lamping L.L.P.

Dodd Frank issued a Special Report that is available to Download Free: how fintech is changing vendor management. Information includes regulatory requirements for vendor management, how COVID-19 has impacted vendor management, Fintech tips for vendor relationships, what fintech’s can do to help with vendor management and Fintech products revolutionizing the lending industry.

First American Docutech updated two COVID-19 Pandemic related documents.

Capital Markets

Treasury yields finally stabilized after their recent drop, closing yesterday mixed a basis point or two away from their opening levels, while the MBS basis, and thus rate sheets, closed tighter. Who says that the refinance wave is completely gone? After six consecutive weeks of lower mortgage apps, the MBA revealed that streak ended this past week with applications rising 8.6 percent. Despite financial markets paying close attention to the risks of another coronavirus flare-up just when they looked set to benefit from a recovery, vaccinations along with a rebounding economy should help keep the housing market strong through the Spring. The day's $24 billion 20-year bond reopening was met with good demand.

Black Knight reported that the national mortgage delinquency rate dropped nearly a full percentage point in March to 5.02 percent, a 16.4 percent decline or half a million fewer past-due loans than there were just a month ago. Historically, March is almost always the best month of the year in terms of mortgage performance, with delinquencies declining an average of 10 percent in March over the last two decades as homeowners have used tax refunds and bonuses to get current on lapsed mortgage payments. This year, there were also hundreds of billions in stimulus payments playing a role as well. Regardless, some 1.9 million mortgage-holders, including those in active forbearance, remain at least 90 days past due on payments. That’s still 5x pre-pandemic levels.

Most of today’s market movement may already be decided, as the ECB is out with its latest monetary policy decision (pretty much re-affirming its current policies) and ECB head Lagarde’s press conference is underway. Domestically, we have received the Chicago Fed National Activity Index for March (“1.71”) along with weekly jobless claims (-39k to 547k, better than expected). Later this morning brings March existing home, March leading indicators, and Freddie Mac’s Primary Mortgage Market Survey for the week ending April 22. Today’s MBS purchase schedule by the Desk sees one operation in each class for a total of $6.6 billion. We begin the day with Agency MBS prices down/worse a few ticks and the 10-year yielding 1.57 after closing yesterday at 1.56 percent.

Employment and Name Changes

The Oscars are set to take place on Sunday, but National Mortgage News and Scotsman Guide have already announced their results. And the winner is… Mid America Mortgage! The Texas-based firm is pleased to announce 4 of its LOs garnered spots on National Mortgage News’ Top Producers of 2021 list and 9 LOs were named a Top Originator by Scotsman Guide. Unfortunately, there weren’t enough spots on the lists for all of Mid America’s stellar LOs. Mid America is proud to offer industry-leading digital solutions, a wide range of products and an innovative atmosphere geared towards LO and borrower success. For loan officers looking to join MidAmerica’s award-winning team, click here!

Caliber CIO Renee Galitis is scheduled to speak at the 2021 Mortgage Bankers Association’s Spring Conference and Expo. On Thursday, April 22 from 3 to 3:50 p.m. CDT, Galitis will talk about how COVID-19 has positioned Caliber’s business in a way that’s never been done before. She’ll discuss the impacts of working remotely, balancing business agility with tech must haves, and explain why now is the time to accelerate tech. If you want to work for a company that's investing in technology to improve work life for its team members, Caliber is for you! Visit Caliber’s website today to view open opportunities. To be immediately considered for Operations or Sales positions, email Jonathan Stanley or Brian Miller respectively.

Hamilton Home Loans, a premier mortgage lender in Sunrise, FL, has announced the appointment of Anna Beltran as President and Chief Operating Officer. Beltran will lead the company’s day-to-day execution of sales and operations strategies, critical work that has kept the leading lender performing at its peak. She’ll continue to manage other essential functions like marketing, sales development, product management and recruiting. All the while partnering with CEO Patrick Sheehy to achieve future growth for Hamilton. “Anna’s focus on sales and operational functions is instrumental for Hamilton’s growth, and the company has unlimited potential thanks to her leadership skills. It’s for those reasons and many others that she has been so successful at Hamilton,” says CEO Patrick Sheehy. Beltran has almost 30 years’ industry experience, a natural fit for Hamilton’s meteoric rise. To learn more about what this winning team can do for you, contact Anna Beltran.

AmeriHome Correspondent continues to grow its Non-Delegated business and its Non-Delegated team! AmeriHome is excited to announce that Paul Needels has joined its leadership team as SVP, Head of Non-Delegated Correspondent Lending! Paul brings over 30 years of leadership experience in third-party and direct mortgage originations to the AmeriHome team. And AmeriHome is continuing to grow its Non-Delegated team and is currently recruiting for several positions including a VP, Non-Delegated Closing & Underwriting Manager, an Underwriter III - Non-Delegated, a Non-Delegated Account Manager and more with positions in Southern California, Texas, and remote! Why choose AmeriHome? One employee had this to say, "Our leadership team truly cares about each employee, their happiness, and their career advancement. AmeriHome’s willingness and desire to listen to our employees, to recognize their talent, to actively advance their careers, and to have an overall wonderful employee experience is simply beyond comparison." Visit the careers page to view all open positions, and submit resumes to careers@amerihome.com to schedule an interview.

Out of Southern California comes news that Commerce Home Mortgage Has a New Name: Change Home Mortgage. And its wholesale division has a new name as well, Change Wholesale, and has appointed Denis Kelly its Chief Wholesale Officer.