If I were going to open up a store for eyeglasses, I’d make the sign in front of the building blurry. Lenders now don’t have to be so clever, as we’re in the midst of about the eighth “once-in-a-lifetime” mortgage market in the last thirty years. Remember when the industry feared that strategic partnerships, MSAs, and joint ventures were “against the law”? Or that Amazon was going to put everyone out of business? Or that TRID would push the cost of originating a loan past what the consumer could afford? I haven’t heard anyone uttering the phrase, “A race to the bottom” recently as lenders’ pipelines are chockfull of Agency and government-backed products. That said, there’s a lot of capital out there chasing deals, and a lot of capital out there chasing yield. Meanwhile, private equity and venture capital groups are prompting some lenders to “go public” which will prove very interesting if/when rates creep higher or refi-burnout really hits. Lots of industry pundits are debating what If I were going to open up a store for eyeglasses, I’d make the sign in front of the building blurry. Lenders now don’t have to be so clever, as we’re in the midst of about the eighth “once-in-a-lifetime” mortgage market in the last thirty years. Remember when the industry feared that strategic partnerships, MSAs, and joint ventures were “against the law”? Or that Amazon was going to put everyone out of business? Or that TRID would push the cost of originating a loan past what the consumer could afford? I haven’t heard anyone uttering the phrase, “A race to the bottom” recently as lenders’ pipelines are chockfull of Agency and government-backed products. That said, there’s a lot of capital out there chasing deals, and a lot of capital out there chasing yield. Meanwhile, private equity and venture capital groups are prompting some lenders to “go public” which will prove very interesting if/when rates creep higher or refi-burnout really hits. Lots of industry pundits are debating what will happen in 2021. Speaking of which, is debating on Twitter meaningful?

Broker/Lender Products and Services

Home Point Financial is already in the midst of a record year in terms of closed loan volume, and it’s turning business up a few more notches here in Q4 by committing to 48-hour underwriting turn times on select loans for well-qualified conventional refinance borrowers. To learn about the criteria that need to be met, contact your AE. Mortgage brokers and correspondents that need to sign up with Home Point should visit its website.

In today’s competitive environment, small to midsize lenders need the right tools and resources to drive efficiencies and focus on core competencies. Maxwell’s digital mortgage platform provides unique capabilities, from powerful point-of-sale technology to on-shore outsourced fulfillment, designed to help lenders grow their fulfillment capacity anywhere between 20-40% cheaper than before. To learn more about how 200+ lenders on Maxwell’s platform are boosting productivity through a technology-forward experience and saving thousands on fulfillment expenses every month, click here or schedule a demo today.

Sales Boomerang notifies mortgage lenders when someone in their database is ready for a loan. “Look at the opportunity cost you have by not having Sales Boomerang. Last year we closed over $72M in loans that we would have lost from not having Sale Boomerang.” (Stephen Barton, Eustis Mortgage) "In the first 4 months we took in $180M in applications and we have about 100 LO’s. That is a significant impact to our business. My top performing LO attributes 25% of her business to Sales Boomerang alerts.” (Katherine Campbell, Assurance Financial) The numbers speak for themselves: 20X Avg ROI, $240 Avg Cost Per Acquired Loan, 10-20% Avg Lift to Loan Volume. Want to see exactly how much you lost this year? Request your report today. We will show you which competitor took your deal, what was the loan amount, what type of loan it was, the term and much more.

To help continue to grow happiness for borrowers, even during unprecedented times, TMS has recently created a self-service tool for customers on expiring forbearance plans. The tool allows them to view all of their available options. Starting from an evaluation of their current loan status, it can provide them a post-forbearance solution based on their answers without them ever having to call into a service center. This is yet another way TMS provides a high-touch, high-tech customer experience to their subservicing clients and their customers. Find out more ways on how TMS is becoming one of the industry's fastest growing subservicers today.

Lenders and banks alike have been called on as financial-first responders in the face of the financial health crisis. As a result, developing a people-first digital strategy is quickly separating financial institutions and their ability to create lifelong financial relationships. Turn to the experts: Best-selling author James Robert Lay and Total Expert Founder & CEO Joe Welu to lay the groundwork. Read on to learn the top four strategies financial institutions are adopting to fuel digital transformation.

“It took me 17 years to get three thousand hits in baseball. I did it in one afternoon on the golf course,” Hank Aaron famously said. No matter what your golf game looks like, FormFree sincerely hopes you can make it to the Heroes Golf Classic on October 30. All proceeds will go to the American Red Cross to fund critical disaster relief efforts. If you’re not in the area, donate from a distance by sponsoring a hole. Speaking of FormFree, the company is raising its voice in the name of financial inclusion. Read on to see how solutions like FormFree’s Passport, Fair Isaac’s UltraFICO and Experian Boost are replacing traditional credit scoring with ability-to-pay (ATP) scores that could create millions of new financial opportunities for consumers with no credit history or subprime credit history, a group that disproportionately includes minorities and low-income earners.

Trainings and Events

In August, SimpleNexus added eClosing to its award-winning digital mortgage platform. Now lenders have additional cause to celebrate, as the SimpleNexus eClose experience (fast becoming one of the industry’s most popular) is an official integration on the Ellie Mae Digital Lending Platform. And if record refis have kept you from hopping on the eClose bandwagon, it’s time to get your feet wet. Join SimpleNexus and Ellie Mae for The 3 Keys to Making a Successful Move to eClose, a webinar on October 21 at 1PM CT designed to guide you through key considerations to make while evaluating digital closing technology.

From 10/14-10/15, with more than 25 virtual sessions divided into five tracks, all designed to champion NAMB members and partner success with actionable takeaways, NAMB National 2020 is a must-attend. Join Keith Bilodeau and Rob Chrisman for an informative discussion on The Evolving Wholesale Climate Plus Impacts of the 2020 Election, October 15, 1111:50 AM CT. The live streaming will include elite speakers from inside and outside the industry including education specialist and best-selling author Ginger Bell, FHFA Director Mark Calabria, marketing guru Carl White, and many more.

Register for the NAR Short Sale & Foreclosure Certification Training on October 16th including forbearance information.

Next week is the virtual National MBA from the comfort of your sofa. In addition, the MBA has several offerings, free to its members.

The Modern Mortgage SUMMIT: Nearly 9000 LOs have signed up for this special event to learn from 28 top producers who average 365 loans closed so far this year. The event is next Tuesday, 10/20, at 8AM PT.

QuestSoft Corporation announced the initial line-up of speakers at its complimentary virtual event, the Lending Compliance and Risk Management Conference on October 26-28. The list includes representatives from the CFPB and OCC, as well as legal experts and industry leaders. The conference will provide attendees with insights on compliance and risk management, as well as the opportunity for registrants to interact in a video networking lounge.

It’s Membership Month at the California MBA: Your opportunity to add your voice to the strongest industry advocate in the largest state market in the nation! The California MBA’s role in fighting to protect access to affordable credit for consumers has never been more important, and the victories (and defeats) are felt in statehouses throughout the country. If your company is not yet a member, it is time to get off the sidelines and get into the game! Join by October 31st and get 15% off your first year’s dues.

ACES QC Now Web Series: Insights Into Mortgage QC Trends - Past Highlights & Predictions for 2020. The upcoming video in this series will launch October 14, hosted by ACES EVP, Nick Volpe and ACES President, Phil McCall. The webinar will cover: QC Highlights for Q1 2020, Key Drivers of Performance for 2020: Early Payment Defaults & Forbearances, Foreshadowing QC Defects Through the Rest of the Year.

Join Chuck Iverson, EVP of Loan Production at Evergreen Home Loans™ and Barry Habib of MBS Highway for Your Time is Now, an informative webinar on how to maximize your business. Including insights on interest rates post-COVID, the next hot market segment, and creating engagement on social media. Register here to reserve your spot and learn more about the webinar. Or mark your calendars and catch the livestream on the Evergreen Home Loans Facebook and YouTube pages.

Plaza’s October 2020 Webinars are available for registration: October 14: Plaza’s Reverse Jumbo, October 21: Plaza's Fannie Mae HomeStyle® Renovation Loan Program.

On October 15th Chief Economist, Ali Wolf, and VP of National Sales, Nicollette Chapman will examine the current economic climate and share insights on what builders look for when choosing a preferred lender.

Chief Economist Ali Wolf continues her COVID-19 Update: The Housing Market series. Register for the October 28th Webinar.

Lenders One, for the remainder of 2020, will feature a topical session that offers the same valuable content you’re accustomed to receiving at in-person Summits. To learn more about membership and access to the Virtual Summit Series, contact Justin Demola, CMB, VP, Sales.

National MI has a set of classes, already lined up for November: MI University webpage.

Capital Markets

United Wholesale Mortgage (UWM) released its financial results for the third quarter of 2020. UWM reported closed loan volume of $54 billion (80% increase from 2019), generated a net income of $1.45 billion (compared to $198 million for the prior year period), and closed a year to date total of $127.8 billion in production (a 20% increase from 2019). Recall that UWM and Gores Holdings IV, Inc. (NASDAQ CM: GHIV, GHIVU, and GHIVW) announced the entry into a “Business Combination Agreement” by which UWM will become a public company upon the consummation of the proposed business combination. 

JPMorgan Chase & Co. has released its third-quarter 2020 financial results. Net revenue was a loss of $339 million, compared with net revenue of $692 million in the prior year. Net revenue was down $1.0 billion, driven by lower net interest income, largely on lower rates, including the impact of faster prepayments on mortgage-backed securities. The current quarter included net investment securities gains of $466 million. The prior year included approximately $330 million of income related to loan sales in Home Lending. JPM's mortgage production income was up slightly Q/Q as higher closed volume more than offset the modest contraction in gain-on-sale (GOS) margins. Origination volumes increased +20% Q/Q but GOS margin fell -43 bp Q/Q to 264 bp. The MSR valuation ticked higher (+3%) Q/Q.

Switching to rate sheets, the U.S. bond market was closed yesterday although, like clockwork, we learned from the MBA that the total number of loans now in forbearance decreased by 49 basis points from 6.81% of servicers’ portfolio volume in the prior week to 6.32% as of October 4, 2020. According to MBA’s estimate, 3.2 million homeowners are in forbearance plans.

This morning “all systems are go” and we’ve had the September NFIB Small Business Optimism Index (+3.8 to 104), and September’s Consumer Price Index (headline and core both +.2%, as expected). Tomorrow has September PPI, and September Fed Beige Book, while Thursday sees jobless claims and September Import/Export Prices. The week closes with September Retail Sales, September Industrial Production and Capacity Utilization, August Business Inventories, October NAHB Housing Market Index, and preliminary University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment Survey. The trading week starts with the 10-year yielding .74 percent and Agency MBS prices better/up .125 compared to Friday’s close.

Employment

A lender headquartered in the Northwest is searching for a remote Capital Markets Product Specialist to increase loan originations, develop solid relationships with its retail branches, departments, and investors to successfully provide the loan products that best serve the Lender's execution and profitability in the capital markets. The person, who may currently be a processor or lock desk person, will assist in product roll out, marketing, education, and trainings. Must be knowledgeable with FNMA/FHLMC/GNMA as well as investor specific products. Submit confidential resumes to Anjelica Nixt for forwarding; specify opportunity.

“Do you have the latest iPhone or Android? Are you eyeing a newer car with better gas mileage? If you stay up to date on the latest technology in your personal life, it’s time to demand the same in your professional life. At Motto Mortgage, we empower loan originators with industry-leading tools and training to stay ahead of the competition. We match your expertise with our enterprise-level systems so that you can offer advanced options for borrowers. Our network systems are built with compliance and transparency in mind so that you can focus on top-notch client service. If you care about sharing more options with borrowers, we are here to provide the best support for you. Connect with us to learn more about how Motto can contribute to your career! Motto Mortgage offices are recruiting nationwide with specific need in CA, ID, IL, NJ, NV, MA, MI, OH, PA, TX, VA, and WA.”

A well-capitalized, start-up correspondent investor is seeking a Director of Capital Markets. This is a unique opportunity for a seasoned capital markets professional to help build an exclusive correspondent company from the ground up. The candidate should have 5+ years of capital markets experience, have managed pricing for a third-party channel, and secured Agency approvals. Duties will include direct oversight of relationships with Agency and private investors, managing warehouse/gestation lines of credit, working with our 3rd party hedging partner to determine pricing & execution strategy, handling all aspects of delivering agency & private securitizations into the market, developing product & marketing strategies, determining operational requirements, and supporting our Client group with pricing expertise. Ability to effectively manage a large correspondent pipeline, evaluate MSR values, and provide detailed analytics reporting are a must. Must be able to work from the USVIs at least 50% of the time; relocation and housing allowance included. Interested parties should send their confidential resume to Chrisman LLC’s Anjelica Nixt for forwarding; please specify opportunity.