Historically the FHFA, and with it Freddie and Fannie, announce official loan levels for the following year soon after Thanksgiving. (There are always rumors prior.) The loan limits are based on home prices around the nation. After 2008, despite the prices in many areas dropping, the Agencies did what they could to maintain stability. Prices in most areas have since rebounded, and so it is expected by many that we'll see an increase in the conventional conforming loan limits. But there is noise out there of the FHFA scaling back its presence and market share. This may take the form of eventual cut backs on programs (should Fannie & Freddie support landlords buying non-owner houses?). Or will they cut high balance loan limits? Changes take a while, so stay tuned.

Credit Changes - Lender Updates

Last year, more than 1.5 million personal loans were given to people with credit scores below 601, on a scale that tops out at 850, according to TransUnion. That is the highest number in more than a decade.

According to recently released research by Fannie Mae, consumer's understanding of actual mortgage qualification criteria revealed only 5 to 16 percent of respondents knew the correct ranges for key criteria. However, lenders were cited as the most influential source of mortgage advice highlighting the important role lenders play and supporting the value of ongoing education and outreach. The complete study and additional insight are currently available.

Children and credit? A new law went into effect that gives parents the ability to check their children's credit reports and freeze it at no cost. The law was in response to the huge data breach at Equifax.

Angel Oak Mortgage Solutions has made a change to its Investor Cash Flow Program. Your borrowers can now qualify based on the property cash flow. No personal income required. Visit www.angeloakms.com for more information.

Excelerate Capital has new enhancements across all its NonQM products. Contact Rachel To for product specifics.

ACC Mortgage offers 95% Jumbo Purchase with no MI. Contact Kelly Brown for details.

AmWest Wholesale is promoting "WAVE GOODBYE TO THE APPRAISAL" with their newly released AmWest Advantage Program - Appraisal Waiver (AW) Option.  Details include: Max 70% LTV; Min. 700 FICO; Up to $1MM loan amount; Primary Res only; Purch and R/T; 1-unit SFR, PUDs and Condos only.  

Citadel's Jumbo Loans offer loan amounts up to $5 mil with no government high balance restrictions. Featuring various options such as full doc or bank statements, stated or DSCR.

Are you looking for a home for your TBD purchase? ACC Mortgage's Kelly Brown can help.

Pacific Bay Lending Group has rolled a new product: Pac Bay Stated Plus. Qualify your Self- Employed borrower using only 1 Month's personal bank statement. Rate starts at 4.875% on a 5/1 Arm and includes Purchase, Rate and Term, and Cash Out.

"Non-traditional loans"? The Lending Answer has its SIVA Simple, an Owner Occupied, 30 year fixed, 60% LTV, starting at @ 5.5%. Or how about its SIVA Preferred? a Mini Asset Depletion Owner Occupied loan with up to 70% LTV, starting @ 4.99%. If you are looking for additional options, contact Arash Asghari.

No Leases, No Reserves Required for Other REO on Jumbo IV with Parkside Lending. Contact Dirk Nelson.

PRMG announced the release of its Ruby Jumbo Product which allows for LTVs up to 90% with no MI required. A pre-recorded training webinar is available to learn more.  PRMG has released its Expanded Access for Wholesale and Correspondent Channels. This product offers Non-QM options including reduced derogatory credit seasoning, interest only, bank statement for qualifying, foreign nationals, expanded DTI ratios up to 55%, investment properties, low credit scores and expanded LTVs with conforming and jumbo amounts allowed. The complete profile can be accessed with PRMG's Product Profiles.

The Caliber Portfolio Lending suite is comprised of competitive loan solutions for borrowers whose background may not resemble the average homebuyer yet demonstrate ability to repay. Find out about options available such as Elite Access, Premiere Access, Homeowners Access, Empire Access and more. Click this link to view Kris Cummings' website.

LoanStream now offers Lender Paid Comp up to 2.75% on Non-Prime Loans and YSP up to 2%. Available Products include: LTV's to 95%, loan amounts to $10mm (ask for exceptions in higher cost areas), Bank Statement Programs (12 & 24 Month Options), down to 600 FICO, one day out of settled BK, foreclosures, & short sales, DTI options up to 55%, non-warrantable condos and Interest Only.  Have you experienced an agency or jumbo fallout? Find your Just Missed Agency Solution with LoanStream.

Wells Fargo Funding has expanded its Non-Conforming policy to allow delayed financing for second homes and investment properties in Texas.

Flagstar's guidelines for cash-out refinance waiting periods for LLC properties have been updated to allow time held in an LLC controlled or majority owned by the borrower(s) to count towards the borrower's six-month ownership requirement.

Effective for loans originated on or after January 1, 2018, CFPB's Final Rule updates the dollar amounts for provisions implementing amendments to Truth-in-Lending Act (TILA) under the Home Ownership and Equity Protection Act (HOEPA) and the Dodd-Frank Act. Accordingly, Sun West has updated its implementation guide.

Mountain West Financial Wholesale posted an Alert regarding CalHFA Increases and Simplification of Income Limits.  MWF shared that Loan Product Advisor has now been updated to automatically calculate the additional required reserves when the subject property is a second home or an investment property. Manual calculation of reserves is no longer required, when the borrower has additional financed second homes or investment properties. Required reserve amounts will automatically be included in the Required Reserves field on the Loan Product Advisor Feedback Certificate.

If your borrower is about to start a new job and has a guaranteed contract for employment and the loan meets ditech and agency guidelines, the income would be acceptable for qualifying purposes. refer to the ditech Client Guide and Product Summaries for complete program requirements.

LHFS Wholesale posted a bulletin regarding Updated & Simplified Income Limits for all CalPLUS 1st Mortgage Programs.

Risk Reduction Mortgage Corp, a startup Fintech mortgage product provider, launched its signature solution, Risk Reduction Mortgages. Its new product will be made available to homeowners and creditors starting in 2019. "Risk Reduction Mortgages Help Homeowners Diversify Their Largest Asset (Home), Reduce Foreclosure and Other Risks, and Save Thousands in Annual Fees. Providing Affordable Path to Homeownership for 70% of Market Unable to Pay Standard 20% Down Payment."

Capital markets

U.S. Treasuries began the week on a flat note, the 10-year closing yesterday's session unchanged from Friday's close at 3.20%. In the U.S. stocks are heading down, and the reasons are pushing bond prices higher and rates lower. Globally, in China President Xi Jinping again pledged support to the private sector while China's Ministry of Finance released a plan for personal tax cuts, the Italian government responded to the EU, saying plans for a 2019 deficit of 2.4% remain intact and Italy can reduce the deficit during the fiscal year and that Italy has no plans to exit the euro, Bank of Korea Governor Lee Ju-yeol signaled that a rate hike is likely in the near future, and another meeting between President Trump and North Korea's Chairman Kim Jong-un is being planned for January.

In the U.S. plummeting stocks are grabbing the headlines - the market is wondering if Trump's trade war will push us into a recession. We've had the Philadelphia Fed's nonmanufacturing indices for October (37.2). Coming up are Redbook same-store sales for the week ending Oct 20, the Richmond Fed's Manufacturing and Services indices for October, and the Treasury auctioning $40 billion 1- and $25b billion 2-month T-bills, followed by $38 billion 2-year notes. We also have five Fed speakers, with Minneapolis' Kashkari, Atlanta's Bostic, Dallas's Kaplan, Chicago's Evans, and Kansas City's George all taking the stage. Tuesday starts with rates lower: the 10-year is yielding 3.14% and Agency MBS prices are better by .250.

Instead of the usual joke... Robocalling is becoming an epidemic. How? This article spells it out. "The FCC encourages consumers to let unknown calls go to voicemail, or to hang up on calls that ask them to press a button to stop receiving future calls. The FCC also recommends joining the National Do Not Call Registry, which prevents callers from being bothered by lawful telemarketers. But don't expect that to fix everything. While the Do Not Call list will stop calls from legitimate businesses, experts said illegal callers have no problem ignoring the list."

Lender products and services

Are you looking to tap into a new revenue stream? American Advisors Group (AAG) (NMLS# 9392) has a solution: Jumbo Reverse Mortgage loans. With Jumbo loans most property types are eligible, which means you can take advantage of a new revenue stream while helping your clients obtain millions. Your borrowers can acquire more equity at a fixed interest rate, with access to all loan proceeds in one lump sum or monthly distribution options. Plus, no mortgage insurance is required! Contact AAG today to learn more.

Do you know if your subservicer is prepared to handle the aftermath of a hurricane? With hurricane season being an annual threat, you need to make testing the strength of your subservicer a priority. Don't wait until it's too late! Here's a new checklist from TMS that goes through everything your subservicer needs to be doing to successfully navigate a crisis. It's important that your borrowers get the same type of white glove service when they're going through one of their most difficult times, as when you're trying to win over their business. So, how did your subservicer score? 

New Penn Financial continues to broaden its proprietary lineup of non-QM products with SmartFunds, the newest addition to the SMART series. The product is designed for borrowers with significant assets sufficient to cover the cost of the loan payments and other monthly obligations. Loans are available in amounts up to $3 million with maximum loan-to-value of 90 percent. The funds may be used for primary residences and second homes. Please contact your New Penn Sales team for more information or visit Go New Penn and New Penn Correspondent.

At this year's MBA, one topic of discussion was how the industry can develop managers to lead teams of powerful producers. We assume successful loan officers will naturally transition into great managers, but the skills for these two positions could not be more different. Why should we expect a new manager to be an effective leader with training? On this episode of Inside the Mortgage Mind, a XINNIX Podcast, mortgage training expert Ralph Remy discusses the difference leadership training can make for the performance of a manager. CLICK HERE to listen! Also at the at the MBA this year, XINNIX shared how you can engage with its award-winning XINNIX SYSTEMTM in a whole new way. This proven platform includes training, accountability, and coaching to drive results with clearly defined achievement and production milestones for mortgage professionals at every stage in their career. Click here to learn how to engage!

JMAC Lending is one of the few lenders that specializes in solutions for investors with no income verification, including 40-year interest-only options for properties that do not have positive cash-flow. "JMAC's Investment Property solutions (Debt Service Coverage Ratio) for non-owner properties is the easiest way to finance investors with difficult income profiles - such as multiple businesses and properties - without the need for tax returns or bank statements, and no 4506T," JMAC Lending's Regional Sales Manager Al Gruzdis says. "Loan amounts to $5M are available, with no job requirement and only one-year mortgage or rental history." In addition, JMAC provides specialty loans for Foreign Nationals. For more information and to submit a scenario, contact Al Gruzdis (949.345.8860). Click here to learn more.

Last week was a MONUMENTAL gathering of mortgage lenders in Washington, D.C. for the MBA Annual Convention. As MBA Chairman Chris George said, "Change is in the air in the mortgage industry and this means one thing: Opportunity." The pace of innovation today is faster than ever before, and innovation speaks of breaking through the status quo. For the past several years, mortgage lenders have been in self-preservation mode, but it was crystal clear at this year's MBA Annual Convention that everyone is focused on improving the customer experience. Your loan officers need technology that will make their jobs easier so they can focus on building relationships. How does your tech stack help your loan officers improve their relationships? Read the Total Expert blog: MBA Annual Convention Key Takeaways.

The 2018 edition of the Originator Connect Conference was out of this world! The conference, which took place the last week of August in Las Vegas, is an amazing event solely focused on the origination community. It should be on the short list of must-attend events for all performance-driven lending teams and loan officers. Whether you attended or not, you're in luck because the Originator Connect organizers teamed up with their friends at Maxwell to release their complementary "2018 Originator Connect Official Recap," an exclusive to all Rob Chrisman readers today. Inside you'll find a conference overview, deep dive into top presentations, and guidance to improve your business today. Download your exclusive eBook copy today!

Do you have as many compensation plans as you do loan officers in your organization? That was the situation at Summit Funding, a fast-growing retail mortgage lender that employs nearly 300 LOs and originates more than $4B in annual loan volume. Calculating commissions in Excel for well over 200 unique plans was a time-consuming task that also raised compliance concerns for Roy Mall, Summit's EVP of accounting, finance and servicing. One conversation with LBA Ware founder Lori Brewer at an industry conference was all it took to convince Mall that her company's CompenSafe was the ideal platform for automating compensation calculation at Summit. Download the free case study to learn how CompenSafe helped Summit eliminate its monthly payroll scramble while giving employees transparency into their compensation and ensuring compliance with California's labor laws.

On Tuesday, October 30 at 10:00 am (PST) Sierra Pacific Mortgage will share how S.M.A.R.T. goal setting can bring structure and trackability into your future goals. This is a perfect time to learn ways to use the S.M.A.R.T. process to increase your individual and professional goal setting skills. That means creating goals that are Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant and Timely. Finish the year out strong and start 2019 with a bang. Register today.

Lending solutions provider Data Facts recently announced a webinar to help mortgage lenders expand their business and increase market share by 30% in 2019. This presentation offers several take-aways; embracing alternate credit products, strengthening opportunities created from mobile devices, creating a delightful customer experience, implementing ways to let the customer "drive", and offering borrower education. The free webinar is on Wednesday, October 24th at 10am CT. Register here. Keep Data Facts in mind as a trusted partner you can rely on for credit reports, fraud products, tax return and social security verifications, flood certs, lead gen products, and more. Talk with a live person and take advantage of their personalized support. By offering a variety of seamless LOS integrations (Encompass, Calyx, Byte, etc.) and a 100% US based customer support team, they help their lending clients close more loans, faster and easier.  

Here's a hi-tech breakthrough in lending to self-employed borrowers. Amidst rising interest rates and declining origination volume, lenders must cast a wider net for customers, a growing number of which are self-employed. To capitalize on this trend, lenders need a simpler, faster way to underwrite mortgages for Americans who are their own bosses. To this end, Freddie Mac has integrated fintech vendor LoanBeam's technology with Loan Product Advisor®, our  automated underwriting system, to introduce the first and only integrated self-employment income solution for the market. LoanBeam's software uses optical character recognition technology to extract and digest a borrower's tax returns and other financials, and then calculate a total income figure that aligns with Freddie Mac's guidelines. This integration offers lenders several advantages, including an automated review of the accuracy of qualifying income, eliminating the need to chase down unnecessary documents that support residual/excess income and certainty that the income calculation is eligible for representation and warranty relief. Learn more.