“I won a million dollars and donated a quarter of it to charity! I now have $999999.75 left.” Money can be funny… or not. In the past, a “flight to quality” or “flight to safety” didn’t involve feckless investors searching for a place to park their money when there was turmoil in the world. It usually involved buying securities issued in the United States, like bonds or MBS. That has changed, hence gold hitting $3,400 dollars an ounce, prompting analysts to wonder if the United States’ (which in the past was the world’s strongest economy) dollar is still thought of as the world’s reserve currency. Despite U.S. stocks being down 10 percent this year, U.S. bond prices and interest rates have done little. Will we only care if it impacts our borrowers? Perhaps. The spring homebuilding season is slower than usual, with housing starts are down 11.4 percent in March month-over-month. Direct and indirect reverberations from tariffs are an element of this; while 7 percent of goods that go into residential construction are imported, economic concerns about the health of the economy are a fairly large factor in the decision whether or not to buy a new home. (Today’s podcast can be found here and this week is sponsored by nCino, makers of the nCino Mortgage Suite for the modern mortgage lender. nCino Mortgage Suite's core products unite the people, systems, and stages of the mortgage process. Hear an interview with dataQollab’s Adam Quinones on how traders are making sense of unpredictability in markets recently.)
Software, Products, and Services for Lenders and Brokers
Superman wore them. So did Harry Potter. Dark, thick, oversized “nerd” glasses. Denise Donoghue, the bespectacled leader of Benchmark’s “Mortgage Nerd Group,” built her brand around them using Floify, a highly configurable point of sale (POS) platform. She designed a borrower experience that was both humorous and effective, while fully supporting her team’s productivity and pull-through. These nerds rule at Benchmark, leading in key metrics over other teams. (Read Floify’s “Top Producer Playbook” for more.) Dynamic Apps, a no-code feature in Floify, elevates any lender to Nerd status, allowing them to create applications by selecting from options to route applicants to questions needed for certain loans and customize the wording. Floify’s innovation gives lenders more flexibility to compete in dynamic markets by opening new revenue streams (think HELOC, non-QM, farm/Ag, or construction loans) with no homework required. See the difference for yourself.
“Are you interested in outsourcing your processing workload, but nervous about trusting a third-party with your clients and processing their loans? Well, when you partner with wemlo® you can rest easy knowing that we’re committed to delivering loan processing services that feel like your own personal concierge. So how does third-party processing benefit you? When you pass the baton to wemlo’s highly trained processors, you’ll be able to focus more on client-facing activities while we handle the processing work. You can count on our straightforward process, and emphasis on clear communication to facilitate a seamless experience, both for you and for your clients. Ready to reap the benefits of third-party processing? Connect with wemlo today! NMLS ID #1853218”
Are you a Mortgage Broker or Loan Officer? Tomorrow, Thursday April 24th at 9am, join Rob Chrisman, Brooks Champagne and Matt Craybas, as they discuss - Navigating the Mortgage Market in 2025. Tune in as these industry leaders discuss the challenges shaping 2025’s Mortgage market. Get practical strategies you can implement immediately! Learn how top mortgage brokers are overcoming obstacles and succeeding in today's market. Register today: castorloans.com/webinars, join the conversation tomorrow!
Unlock unmatched efficiency and competitive pricing with Originator Assistant in the Optimal Blue® PPE. This AI-powered tool supports Optimal Blue’s commitment to delivering high-impact, no-cost innovations that help lenders operate more efficiently and maximize profitability on every loan transaction. Originator Assistant streamlines loan structuring by identifying alternate scenarios with more competitive pricing, saving loan officers time, eliminating bias, and reducing guesswork. It automatically detects pricing breakpoints and suggests strategic loan options, helping lenders optimize their competitive advantage. Combining AI-driven scenario optimization with the flexibility to explore multiple pricing scenarios, Originator Assistant helps ensure loan officers can provide the best options for their borrowers. It is ready to use right away by Optimal Blue PPE clients in the enhanced user interface with no setup needed. Learn more about Originator Assistant on the Optimal Blue PPE Innovations page.
PlainsCapital Bank National Warehouse Lending, a subsidiary of Hilltop Holdings (NYSE: HTH), offers funding for multiple mortgage products and programs with little to no additional requirements. FNMA HomeStyle, FHA 203K Full, Limited, and USDA Rural Housing renovation loans. Mortgage Revenue Bond and DPA loans with extended dwell times. Sub Limits for lower FICO scores, manufactured homes, renovation, construction and other unique mortgage products and programs. With over 30 years’ experience and a well-capitalized diversified financial holding company we provide our customers confidence to meet their loan funding needs. If you attending the TMBA Annual Conference in Arlington, TX and interested in learning more about PlainsCapital Bank National Warehouse Lending please contact Brent Amos.
When Privatized, Will Fannie and Freddie Still be Called GSEs?
As the moves toward removing Freddie and Fannie (Government Sponsored Enterprises) from conservatorship take place behind closed doors, the question lenders have is, “We know conventional conforming rates will go up, but by how much?” Part of that will eventually be answered by the amount of government (read: taxpayer) backing they have. Not every home loan in the United States has to have government backing, of course, when times get tough and other investors flee, it sure helps. Meanwhile, most applications are priced, processed, underwritten, and funded to Agency guidelines. Who’s doing what out there?
FHFA Director Bill Pulte, part of the Pulte family and known for firing much of Fannie Mae’s board, took to social media to note that no more executive dismissals should be forthcoming at the GSEs in the near term, suggesting instead that Fannie and Freddie will be focusing on priorities including growth, eliminating mortgage fraud, safety and soundness, and making homes affordable again.
Freddie Mac expanded eligibility for hybrid appraisals available for Loan Product Advisor (LPA) submissions and resubmissions on or after 04/07/2025. View Pennymac Announcement 25-41 for further information.
Fannie Mae April Servicing Guide announcement 2025-02 includes clarification on how to calculate the remaining mortgage loan term for a Fannie Mae Flex Modification if the borrower has made additional principal payments, plus miscellaneous updates.
Fannie Mae LL-2025-01 includes the updates to the time frames within which routine foreclosure proceedings must be completed in twenty-two jurisdictions. The addition of COVID-19 Foreclosure Moratorium and Forbearance as allowable delays, while removing Unemployment Forbearance. The policy changes apply to all mortgage loans with a foreclosure sale date on or after July 1, 2025.
Fannie Mae posted the April Appraiser Quality Monitoring (AQM) list to Fannie Mae Connect™.
New to servicing Fannie Mae loans or would like to refresh your knowledge? Our self-paced eLearning series provides an overview of the Servicing Guide, our systems, investor accounting, and much more. Get grounded in the fundamentals.
Users can now engage with technology service providers (TSPs) to leverage IRS tax return transcripts to import data into Income Calculator’s web interface, helping reduce time spent on manual data entry. Fannie Mae authorized two TSPs for tax transcript data extraction, and both are now available to support.
Pennymac Announcement 25-40: Updates to Conventional LLPAs.
Capital Markets
Many saw Mr. Cooper in the press three weeks ago for beginning the approval process for its purchase by Rocket Companies. But there’s more! Yesterday Mr. Cooper returned to the residential mortgage-backed market for the first time in five years with an offering of bonds backed by home equity loans. COOPR 2025-CES1 comprises five tranches totaling US$296.6m. The largest is a US$248.5m senior note, which carries a weighted-average life of 2.63 years. Fitch and Kroll are expected to rate it AAA/AAA. Pimco and Mr Cooper are cosponsors. Barclays, Goldman Sachs and Mizuho are the joint bookrunners. Much of Mr. Cooper's current indebtedness is in the form of unsecured bonds, totaling about US$5bn, which Rocket intends repay or refinance.
The investor appetite for mortgage bonds has remained somewhat steady despite the current market volatility touched off by Donald Trump's unpredictable tariff proposals. LSEG reports that, “While investors have pushed for wider spreads, they have not become unattractive for issuers. Overall private-label RMBS issuance totals US$36.5bn so far this year, slightly more than the US$34.4bn for the same span in 2025, IFR data show. Over the same periods, home equity supply totals US$3.6bn and US$3.2bn, respectively.”
Markets were rattled yesterday by a combination of sobering global growth projections and geopolitical concerns. The IMF downgraded its forecast for global economic growth in 2025 to 2.8 percent, a significant reduction from its 3.3 percent estimate in January, marking what could be the slowest expansion since the onset of the pandemic and the second-weakest pace since 2009. The downgrade reflects deepening concerns about a sluggish recovery and mounting headwinds from trade tensions. Midday remarks by Treasury Secretary Bessent, who described the current U.S.-China standoff as “unsustainable” and called for de-escalation, added to investor uncertainty. Meanwhile, the U.S. Treasury’s $69 billion auction of 2-year notes drew notably weak demand, particularly from foreign buyers, triggering a fresh intraday low for the 2-year yield and signaling rising investor caution amid an increasingly fraught global backdrop.
Today’s economic calendar kicked off with mortgage applications decreasing 12.7 percent from one week earlier. The next release will be April S&P Global PMIs, which will offer the first broad-reaching view of business conditions in April. They are expected to show manufacturing in contraction and growth of service-providing businesses slowing. We then receive new home sales for April, seen ticking up to 680k from 676k in March. Economic uncertainty and high prices likely weighed on both new and existing home sales in March. Treasury activity will be highlighted by an auction of $30 billion 2-year FRNs and $70 billion 5-year notes. Four Fed speakers are currently scheduled: Goolsbee, Waller, Musalem, and Hammack, before the latest Beige Book is set to be released in the afternoon. We begin Wednesday with Trump saying he’s not going to fire Fed Chair Powell, Agency MBS prices slightly better than Tuesday’s close, the 2-year yielding 3.81, and the 10-year yielding 4.30 after closing yesterday at 4.39 percent.
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