This isn’t a commentary. It’s a “next level experience!” How are we in the week ending the first quarter already? Here’s some news that will be greeted with glee by every independent mortgage banker in the nation, whether they do business in California or not. The California MBA and national MBA, and constituents across the state, have defeated the CRA requirement for non-depository institutions in that CA. Given that 20-25 percent of residential production comes from the Golden State, it has wide ramifications. CEO Susan Milazzo tells me that the author of SB 1176 is removing all current CRA language. (Proponents of CRA requirements for IMBs relied, in part on a Greenlining Institute report.)
What else are independents watching? A recent STRATMOR workshop indicated that the technology dollars spent is down for some large banks, but appears to have increased for some large IMBs as they are more likely to have transaction-based pricing than large banks. So in 2021, either more loans originated equated to higher costs for the Independents, or large banks were too busy during the refinance boom of 2020-2021 and may have hit the “pause” button on major projects. The technology being used by residential lenders is constantly evolving, and today’s audio version of the commentary is available here.
Lender & broker products and services
Total Expert recently announced the launch of its newest product that helps create the perfect customer journey: Customer Intelligence. Customer Intelligence drives growth and retention for lenders by surfacing borrower intent with consumer insights and signals. It allows you to know when customers act, allowing for a 360-degree view of contacts and automating nurture and outreach to provide the ultimate customer experience, sending consumers the right message at the right time. To learn more, Total Expert is hosting an upcoming webinar with Senior Director of Product Marketing, Lora Osborn, and Chief Product Officer, Matt Tippets, on April 7 from 12-1pm CST.
“At Richey May we dig in and go deep. We have been focused on the mortgage banking industry for over 35 years. It’s where we came from and it’s what we know. This singular intent has created a full suite of services and products designed specifically for mortgage banking leaders by people who truly know the ins and outs of your operations. Our goal is to equip mortgage leaders with the best, whether that means you are utilizing our game-changing platforms or utilizing our experts as an extension of your team, so you can accomplish your goals more easily and stay ahead of the curve. From audit and tax to accounting services, cybersecurity to intelligent automation, and business intelligence, we have you covered. Contact our experts today to learn more about how we can help you reach your goals.”
Take3Tech™, creator of TheRuleTool™ & LoanMAPS™, is your technology solution. Interested in a Cloud-based, fully-integrated digital processing and underwriting platform that will eliminate your need for a POS, a LOS, a CRM, report writer, and income calculator? Then LoanMAPS is for you. Or maybe you are searching for something to reduce your time searching through government and agency guidelines. TheRuleTool is your answer. No matter what solution you’re looking for, you can’t go wrong with a demo from Take3Tech. These demos may be short, but the benefits to your company will last forever! We will be in Las Vegas April 11-14 for MBA Technology Solutions Conference. If you’ll be in attendance, make the most out of your trip with a Take3Tech demo. If you won’t be joining, we are also offering virtual demos. In person in Vegas, or virtually, we look forward to hearing from you.
Are you a broker looking to profit from what’s already turning out to be a big year for purchase? Look no further than Caliber Wholesale. With 97% of loans closing on time (based on data from 9/2021 to 1/2022), a proprietary LOS system that keeps origination and loan processing simple, a Reconnect program to alert you when past customers are in the market, and a robust line-up of loan products, you’ll be well-positioned. For some cool first-hand stories and insight on how to take advantage of the current market opportunity check out the always-engaging David Schroeder, Caliber’s EVP for Third-Party Originations, as he talks 2022 on the Home Connection Podcast. David provides inspiration on how to make this year one to remember for your business. If you aren’t yet approved to work with Caliber Wholesale, contact us here.
Events to wrap up March and head into April
Let Indecomm’s Rachael Harris, VP of Product Management, show you how to operationalize and automate non-QM loans while maintaining your risk appetite with DecisionGenius™. Register for tomorrow’s Indecomm webinar: Automating Non-QM Loans.
Sales Boomerang’s Alex Kutsishin sits down with Brad Bieber from Homebot tomorrow at 1 pm ET to break down the ways that lenders can leverage technology to simultaneously empower consumers and earn their trust. Join Alex and Brad to learn more.
FHA is offering a free training on March 31st that will provide an update on appraisal standards, practices, and policies. Topics for discussion include Single Family Housing Policy Handbook 4000.1 updates, unbiased appraising and appraiser integrity, components of appraisal guidance, defective property conditions. Register for FHA’s Webinar - FHA Appraisal Policies, Principals and Practices for Appraisers. Advance registration is required no later than March 30th. This training is not eligible for Continuing Education Units (CEUs) for licensed appraisers.
Join the MBA/MW on March 31 for lunch, networking, and a class on growing your builder business in 2022: How to Win Builder Business.
October Research’s Dodd Frank Update is offering a complimentary webinar, The Move to ANSI Standards, 4 p.m. ET, Thursday March 31, featuring Fannie Mae and two top appraisers to help prepare you to comply. Register today to learn these standards, possible exceptions, and potential consequences.
MBA of Eastern PA is inviting Members to attend a Home Equity Lending Update with Saket Nigam, SVP of Capital Markets for Spring EQ, on March 31 at 02:00 PM.
Friday the 1st is the next edition of The Mortgage Collaborative’s Rundown with Rich and Rob. Robert Senko, Founder & CEO of ACC Mortgage, will co-host the show along with Rich Swerbinsky, the COO of The Mortgage Collaborative, and me. We’ll will be covering current events in the mortgage market for 30 minutes starting at 1PM MT in “The Rundown with Rich and Rob.”
Are you interested in taking a deep dive into loanDepot Wholesale's systems and programs - and getting all your questions answered? Check loanDepot Wholesale's training calendar with topics ranging from mello® Broker Portal to Renovation training.
This April, Enact (formerly Genworth Mortgage Insurance) will host multiple live courses to help grow your business and positively impact homebuyers. Enact dives in deep on calculating income for self-employed borrowers using Enact’s updated SEB calculators with two-part sessions on Fannie Mae Form 1084 and Freddie Mac Form 91. Browse Enact’s Course catalog of on-demand webinars, just have your company or individual NMLS ID handy when registering.
Come meet with members of the AD & Mortgage Team to learn about the exciting Non-QM products available to your clients. Attend the CMLA Mortgage Lenders Expo 2022 on April 7 at the Hyatt Regency Denver Tech Center in Denver, CO.
On Thursday, April 7 at 2 PM ET XINNIX presents a special live event featuring yours truly: "Beyond the Daily Commentary 2022: A Live Q&A with Rob Chrisman." XINNIX Founder & CEO, Casey Cunningham, will be hosting this highly demanded session likely on topics taken from the headlines of my daily commentary with an opportunity to elaborate more on what is important to you.
On April 7th at 2 p.m. ET, October Research’s Dodd Frank Update is offering its latest edition of the Economic Forecast Series – Featuring Patrick Stone. He will share insights on how you can prepare your business as well where household earnings are headed, adjusting to the changing market, the expectations for inflation and much more.
On April 8th at 9:45 AM (PDT), via Zoom, join Silicon Valley CAMP - Avoiding the Financing Pitfalls of Condominiums. Discussion will include classification, documentation requirements, red flags, CPM and SUA (Spot) approval for FHA.
Register for TMBA’s education webinar, "Anatomy of Cyber Attacks' with Speaker Tom Ervin, FBI San Antonio, Wednesday April 13th -10am CDT. Mr. Ervin will showcase live demonstrations of multiple malware threat vectors and provide sobering examples of the ease at which attackers can compromise your data.
If you missed Experience 2022 in Las Vegas, ICE Mortgage Technology has curated the most popular conference content, available online, on-demand, and free for you to access from April 18-30, 2022. to you for a limited time. Virtual Experience lets you tap into the very best of ICE Experience 2022.
WMBA is thrilled to announce its in-person April Program, hosting a panel of top Washington realtors for Realtor Panel-Live! on Tuesday, April 19th, 2022, at 5:30 pm at the Lunchbox Lab in Bellevue, WA. There are a limited number of Event Sponsorships for its first in-person Monthly Program. An Event Sponsorship is $500 and includes 2 comped registrations and company logos on all event communications. Please email admin@wa-mba.org if you are interested in sponsoring Realtor Panel-Live!
Capital markets
Last week’s bond sell-off continued on Friday, and interest rate volatility is nearing the highs reached during the peak of the COVID crisis in March 2020. Some of the attribution to the sell-off was related to reports of Russia scaling back its war aims, but it also coincided with hawk-talk from more Fed officials, including Chair Powell and traditional doves. Calls are now for at least one, if not more, 50-basis point hikes from the Fed in the coming meeting(s).
The University of Michigan’s final March consumer sentiment survey showed inflation expectations remain high. The March reading marks the lowest level for the index since October 2012 as inflationary psychology is becoming more and more ingrained in the economic behavior of consumers and firms. Notably, it was indicated in the report that 32 percent of consumers expect their overall financial position to worsen in the year ahead, which is the highest level since the survey started in the mid-1940s. In general, economic reports last week for both manufacturing and homebuilding showed supply shortages clogging the production pipeline across all parts of the economy.
This week’s economic highlights includes several releases including March payrolls on Friday. The focus is still on Ukraine and world-wide commodity inflation, but today’s calendar is already under way with advance economic indicators for February: goods trade balance ($106.6 billion), retail inventories (+1.1 percent), and wholesale inventories (+2.1 percent). Later this morning brings the Dallas Fed manufacturing index for March. After the Desk released a new purchase schedule for the March 28 to April 13 period at the close on Friday, which dropped purchases in 2.5 percent and added 4.0 percent into the mix in 30-year MBS, the Desk will purchase a maximum of $2.15 billion today consisting of 30-year 3.0 percent through 4.0 percent. We begin the end of March, and thus the first quarter, with Agency MBS prices .125 better than Friday’s close and the 10-year yielding 2.46 after closing Friday at 2.49 percent.
I have started telling everyone about the benefits of eating dried grapes. It’s all about raisin awareness.
Jobs & award nomination
Acra Lending, the industry’s fastest growing private mortgage lender, is hiring Account Executives! We are expanding our team and are seeking driven individuals to join our company. Acra Lending is focused on growth while continuing to provide industry-leading programs to meet the needs of our customers. If you’d like to join a company that provides a competitive compensation and numerous career advancement opportunities, email careers@acralending.com or apply directly at joinacralending.com!
Mortgage Women Magazine looking for women at all levels of the mortgage industry who are finding ways to inspire, advance and achieve beyond the norm. Pioneers, leaders, innovators. If these words come to mind when considering your ideal candidate for our "Mortgage Stars" list, then get your nomination in and show your support for today's female leaders in the mortgage profession. But tell us as much of a story as possible. We need to know why this nominee's star burns bright. Submit your 2022 Mortgage Star nomination, here.
“Arc Home is looking for seasoned mortgage professionals to join our growing team. Our top priority is delighting our customers. We are recruiting the best talent available to fulfill that goal while offering a rewarding career opportunity. As a multi-channel lender, we are looking to fill roles within sales, operations, and corporate positions. Arc Home offers a diverse product set including Non-QM, Non-Agency, FNMA, FHLMC, GNMA along with top technology to ensure you succeed. We provide an exceptional workplace culture and are committed to empowering our employees' continued growth and career development. If you are ready for a change, contact Nicole Gimello or visit our page.”
PacRes Mortgage, formerly Pacific Residential Mortgage is excited to announce the hiring of Robert Thompson and his team of experienced mortgage professionals to represent our fast-growing national brand in the state of Utah. Robert, as co-SW Regional Manager, will use his over 2 decades of experience to lead our continued rapid expansion in UT, AZ, CO, and Las Vegas. “I joined The Pac because their unparalleled 5-star service not only extends to their local client, but also to entrepreneurs like myself, that have a desire and mindset for growth,” said Robert. If you want to build your entrepreneurial dream, join Robert and the uniqueness of a “national boutique” company that has all the resources of a large corporation without any of the corporate bureaucracy. Please contact Eric Wiley, CXO at 971-645-7087
FHA has a job opportunity in Washington, DC as a Management Analyst. Duties include serving as the technical expert for the design, development, and implementation of 0MB Circular A-123 policies and procedures. Develop assessment criteria and analyze findings. Salary range is $106,823 - $164,102 per year. View FHA job announcement 22-HUD-1224-P for details. In Denver, CO, FHA is taking applications for a Senior Single Family Housing Specialist (Quality Assurance Division). This position will act as a HUD expert and advisor on the lender origination and servicing practices required for compliance. Must have the ability to exercise judgment in interpreting and applying guidelines in responding to and solving problems and dealing with controversial issues, recognize facts and evidence and be able to assemble, correlate, and analyze information obtained in reviews and investigations. Salary range is $104,038 - $135,247 per year, FHA job announcement 22-HUD-1291-P.
And FHA has an opening Santa Ana, CA. for an Appraiser who will review and manage appraisals assigned for review to identifying issues or problems conflicting with FHA regulation. Recommend disciplinary actions or sanctions against appraisers who violate USPAP and HUD program requirements. Resolve valuation issues. Salary range is $91,254 - $118,635 per year. To view complete job description, go to FHA job announcement 22-HUD-1198-P.
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