“Your call is important to us. Please stay on the line until it is no longer important to you.” To state the obvious, serving customers can make or break a company. Are you ever frustrated when the person ahead of you in the store is fumbling around to find their pen to write a check? After July 15, at Target Stores, no more. The post office continues to lose customers as they move to alternatives to sending a letter or a check through the mail: After increasing the price of a first-class postage stamp to 68 cents in January, the U.S. Postal Service is planning to increase the cost again, bumping the cost of a first-class Forever stamp to 73 cents on July 14, a 5 percent jump from the previous price point and 10 cents above the price at the start of 2023. The announcement about the second jump this year was made in April. Laws impact your customers, and you’ve probably seen something about the Supreme Court overturning Chevron deference (and other administrative law cases). What this means to the mortgage industry is covered in attorney Brian Levy’s most recent Mortgage Musings. (Today’s podcast is found here and this week’s is sponsored by nCino, makers of the nCino Mortgage Suite for the modern mortgage lender, uniting the people, systems, and stages of the mortgage process. Hear an interview with nCino’s Casey Williams on various ways to help lenders get their back-of-the-house working more efficiently.)

Lender and Broker Software, Services, and Products

“LoanCare® offers tailored servicing solutions to help you maximize today’s market environment. Explore our latest eBook, "The Resurgence of HELOCs: Are You Ready to Service the Growing HELOC Boom?" and dive into pressing topics such as Special Loan Servicing Operations and Navigating through Data Analytics. By partnering with an expert HELOC subservicer, you can unlock new opportunities, streamline operations, and deliver exceptional customer experiences. Don't miss out on this essential resource for exceeding customer satisfaction and finding new revenue streams! Download your eBook copy today.”

“PlainsCapital Bank National Warehouse Lending, a subsidiary of Hilltop Holdings (NYSE: HTH), understands the importance of efficiency when it comes to meeting mortgage lenders funding requests. “Express Funding” is how we help our customers reduce the time needed to get loans funded quickly. Express Funding allows our customers to submit multiple loans for funding in one simple data upload, whether it is one loan or one hundred loans. We have a growing list of 5,000+ approved closing agents, No Doc funding requirements and funding turn times averaging under 20 minutes! As a well-capitalized financially strong banking partner we give our customers confidence in an uncertain market. If you are interested in learning more about PlainsCapital Bank National Warehouse Lending please contact Deric Barnett, (469) 955-6786.”

“With origination costs averaging $11-12k per loan, lenders must be mindful of every dollar spent. One of the best ways to reduce costs and create greater efficiencies is by working with one vendor for your verifications. Make Xactus, the leading fintech verification innovator for the mortgage industry, your partner for end-to-end solutions. Our proprietary platform, Xactus360, gives you access to all the verifications you need from pre-application to post close, including credit reports, employment and tax transcript verifications, flood reports, property valuations and more! Better yet, when you partner with Xactus you get access to the best people too, fintech and mortgage experts committed to advancing the modern mortgage. Want to learn more? Check out this blog. And be sure to register for our new webinar, Leading to Innovate: Revolutionizing Verifications, on July 24 at 12 p.m. EST. Shelley Leonard, President of Xactus, and James Owens, CTO, will be presenting. Stay updated on Xactus’ latest news by following Xactus LinkedIn page.”

“There is a fear in the marketplace of switching subservicers. Service transfers can, in fact, be messy when you have the wrong partner subservicer. However, what is even worse in the long run…is sticking with your current subservicer when they aren’t providing your customers with topflight experience and exceeding your performance expectations. The health of your portfolio is critical for your bottom line and the experience that your customers receive is essential for retention. It’s time for you to find the right subservicing partner and take action by making the switch. At Servbank, we got you covered. Let us get your portfolio performance in line, starting with a fearless transfer process that we have down to a science. We handle dozens of client transfers per year, with a fully assisted, stress tested transfer process that is entirely transparent. Once aboard, all loans get the best-in-class customer experience, superior performance, and compliant servicing that has turned Servbank into the nation’s premier bank subservicer. Let us create excellence for you and your customers. Click here to find out why Servbank is the right partner for you.”

Lenders One Members can now make it easier for their borrowers to secure the homeowners insurance coverage they need with L1 Insurance. This new solution helps borrowers quickly get multiple competitive quotes for homeowners’ insurance in all 50 states, enabling your team to close loans faster and with less friction. L1 Insurance integrates seamlessly with your loan origination software to share borrower and property information with a team of licensed agents, who can quickly prepare an application for insurance. Plus, L1 Insurance works with over 40 carriers across 50 states to get your borrower access to competitively priced coverage no matter where they live. To learn more, reach out to Tricia Migliazzo or request a demo today.

STRATMOR Ops Workshop

While we were all hoping for a modest rebound in the housing market during the spring and summer selling season, it simply has not materialized. It’s still a challenge to earn profits on the production side of the house. Based on MBA Quarterly Performance Report data, 58 percent of lenders were not profitable on production (excluding servicing) for Q1 2024. Operations executives have tried to keep their core team together, but even that has become problematic as staff reductions continue. So, what can lenders do now to continue to streamline operations and weather the enduring downturn? Join STRATMOR Group for its virtual Operations Workshop, August 13,14, and 15, to interact with STRATMOR advisors and peer lenders about improving operational efficiency, overcoming recent challenges and pain points, and current trends in mortgage operations. The three two-hour virtual sessions are designed specifically for senior operations executives. Contact STRATMOR to learn more and reserve your seat today.

Fannie RFP Note

Yesterday’s Commentary noted that Fannie Mae issued a Request for Proposal (RFP) to evaluate qualified interested industry participants for potential inclusion in its Title Acceptance pilot and other suppliers that have viable solutions to reduce borrowers’ closing costs. Vendors can respond to the RFP in ProcureOne. Please note that the RFP market interest period closes on July 11, 2024.

Training, Events, and Webinars

“Lenders, say goodbye to guesswork and hello to precision and profitability. Optimize Your Advantage with Optimal Blue’s Competitive Data License! Join us on Wednesday, July 10, at 1 p.m. CT for a webinar that will transform the way you approach pricing decisions. Webinar attendees will learn about the features, benefits, and high-value use cases of the new Competitive Data License, along with Optimal Blue’s other data solutions. Competitive Data License is now available exclusively to Optimal Blue PPE users, providing access to granular pricing metrics, real-time comparative data, and more. This granular data access empowers you to confidently set competitive rates, maximize profitability, and stay agile in any market environment. Reserve your webinar spot now to stay ahead of the curve, no matter the market condition, with granular data insights from Optimal Blue.”

“Leadership is crucial for organizational success and culture. Recognizing the differences between strong and weak leadership will directly impact your team's success. Inspired by ‘Good to Great’ by Jim Collins, tomorrow’s webinar features Laura J. Brandao (Equity Prime Mortgage), Keith Canter (First Community Mortgage), and Richard Grieser (Truv) sharing insights from their many years of mortgage leadership experience. You'll leave this July 10th session with strategies to effect change in your organization, attract and maintain the right talent, understand team needs to advance shared goals, maintain a disciplined yet happy culture, and leverage technology as an accelerator. Come join us!”

Have you heard about the Fannie Mae Mission Score product grids? MCT recently announced that it is the first to integrate with the Mission Score API, which empowers originators to take advantage of market incentives for mission-oriented lending. “Fannie Mae changed the market in 2016 by bringing spec programs to the cash window,” said Phil Rasori, COO of MCT. “Now they have done it again by pushing the Mission Score pay-ups available on the securitization side toward front-end borrower pricing.” Learn how you can improve margins and price competitiveness in the upcoming webinar on July 11th featuring Olga Gorodetsky, Director, Capital Markets at Fannie Mae as well as Phil Rasori of MCT. Pete Skarnulis, Single-Family Business Account Management Solutions, Vice President at Fannie Mae, shared, “through close partnership and collaboration with our industry partners, we’re able to introduce innovative solutions to the market at scale, helping to promote positive change across the mortgage industry.”

A good place for longer term conference planning is to start is here for in-person events in the future.

Today the 2nd at 11am PT, two veteran LOs discuss all things mortgage with Industry Leaders. Mortgage Pros 411 with Audrey Boissonou and Kevin Casey.

The FAMPChat Summer Series, presented by the Central Florida FAMP Chapter, continues today: register now for all the sessions.

Looking for more in-depth commentary on weekly mortgage news? Register here for "Mortgage Matters: The Weekly Roundup” presented by Lenders One. Tomorrow, Wednesday, at 2:00 PM EST/11:00 AM PT Robbie Chrisman and Justin Demola will interview Richey May’s Seth Sprague on all things servicing.

On Wednesday, July 10 at 11:00 am, NMMLA will present “The current and future state of Digital Mortgages” with Guest Speaker, Robert Pathman.

Thursday the 11th will be another episode of The Big Picture at 3PM ET… Rich Swerbinsky and Robbie Chrisman are interviewing the fabled Kevin Peranio of PRMG!

National MI: Leading a Team​​with Andrew Oxley - July 11th at 2pm ET.

The Ultimate Mortgage Expo returns to New Orleans July 10 – 11. Join OCN in the Hotel Monteleone for a jam-packed event featuring 2 days of sessions and 2 days of exhibition hall opportunity. Also, come earlier on July 10 to enjoy complimentary access to the Mortgage Star Conference for women. Enjoy free access to this can't-miss event using the code OCNFREE.*

Join Servbank’s cohosted webinar with the Mortgage Bankers Association on July 11 at 1-2p ET to learn how handling thousands of service transfers has gotten Servbank’s transfer plan down to a science. With a battle-tested plan and a laser-focus on customer experience, the painless service transfer is a reality. Register for the webinar today! The webinar is free for non-members by creating an account and entering the campaign code “SERVBANK100” at checkout.

MBA Education Webinar: Loan Servicing Transfers that Deliver Results, July 11, 1:00 PM - 2:00 PM ET.

ICYMI: Artificial Intelligence & Mortgage: The Art of the Possible Webinar Recording.

Last Word, Fridays at 10 a.m. PT/1 p.m. ET, Fridays with Kevin Peranio and Brian Vieaux is your ultimate destination for incisive analysis and spirited discussions on the hottest topics affecting the mortgage sector each week. Hosted by industry veterans, the show delivers expert opinions, forecasts, and critical insights to keep you informed and ahead of the curve. Tune in for a comprehensive and engaging analysis of the week's most important mortgage industry news, providing viewers with the knowledge and insights they need to make informed decisions in a rapidly changing market.

Friday the 12th will see an episode of The Mortgage Collaborative’s Rundown with Melissa Langdale covering current events in the mortgage market for 30 minutes starting at noon PT, 3PM ET. This week’s guest is Shashank Shekar and it will be focused on tech/innovation, hearing about AI and mortgage lending. Most tech takes an “outside the industry” approach, but he’s closing loans every day and building tech that his company can use to automate as much of the process as is feasible.

Capital Markets

And some exciting news about someone I have known a long time and is a fellow Tuttle alum: Former Compass Analytics CEO, Rob Kessel, is returning to the mortgage industry and launching Panoramic Capital Academy (PCA). PCA will offer a much-needed, vendor independent capital markets education curriculum. We all know that the industry has needed this for years! The inaugural 14-week, asynchronous course starts this September and provides a comprehensive, in-depth curriculum about mortgage capital markets, including housing policy, industry structure, capitalization, best execution, rate sheets, margin strategies, hedging, servicing valuation and accounting. The course has been reviewed, vetted, and endorsed by many capital market leaders including myself. Successful students will receive certificates of completion which will represent the industry’s first accreditation of a comprehensive capital markets education. For more information, please visit www.panoramiccap.com or email Rob.

Without any top tier data to open the week, and to say little of the uncertainty swirling around the U.S. presidential campaign, investors squared bets ahead of Thursday’s release of June’s consumer price index (expected at 0.1 percent month-over-month after remaining flat in May). Both the CPI and PPI (due out Friday) reports are expected to show that inflation moved sideways last month despite lower prices of gasoline, diesel, and used cars. Aside from those inflation readings later this week, earnings season kicks off with the big banks reporting on Friday. Oh, and Fed Chair Powell heads to Capitol Hill today and tomorrow for his semi-annual Humphrey-Hawkins testimony after last week’s release of what were deemed dovish minutes from the central bank's latest monetary policy meeting. Traders are once again betting that Federal Reserve officials will lower interest rates twice this year.

There was also some chatter yesterday that labor market data has supported the case for the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates. The June Nonfarm payroll report, released this past Friday, came in softer than anticipated, partly reflecting typical seasonality of revenues and outlays. Despite the headline payrolls reading printing higher than consensus expectations, there were large downward revisions to the May and April readings by a cumulative 111k. The downward revision was coupled with an unexpected uptick in the unemployment rate, though the Fed has clearly met its full employment mandate, one-half of its overall goal.

On the data front, we learned yesterday that Consumer credit increased by $11.3 billion in May, when it was expected to increase $9.5 billion and after increasing an upwardly revised $6.5 billion in April. Revolving credit increased by $7.0 billion to $1.345 trillion, while non revolving credit increased by $4.4 billion to $3.720 trillion. The key takeaway from the report is that revolving credit growth accelerated strongly, raising the question of whether consumers are turning to revolving credit because of need or because of increased optimism about economic prospects.

Much like yesterday, there isn’t any top-tier data today either, but Fed Chairman Powell will begin his two-day semiannual testimony on monetary policy with an appearance before the Senate Banking Committee. Today’s economic calendar got under way before the open with NFIB small business optimism for June (). Later today brings Redbook same store sales for the week ending July 6, several Treasury auctions that will be headlined by a $58 billion 3-year note sale, and (aside from Chair Powell in Washington D.C.) remarks from Fed Governor Bowman. We begin Tuesday with Agency MBS prices slightly worse (a few ticks) from Monday evening, the 10-year yielding 4.29 after closing yesterday at 4.27 percent, and the 2-year at 4.64.

Jobs

“Mortgage industry innovator Better Mortgage is searching for remote Mortgage Loan Officers to join our team. Better Mortgage has funded over $100 billion in loans for our customers - more than any other mortgage fintech! Better Mortgage uses a custom platform that makes lending as easy as pressing a button. Come join us and be a part of the mortgage revolution! Please send resumes to Maggie Ark. Better Mortgage Corp. | NMLS #330511.”

Canopy Mortgage is drawing in high-performing loan officers from across the Nation as it closes out a profitable Q2! It's noteworthy that some other national lenders are beginning to emulate the slimmer corporate structure and sustainable P&L model. Canopy’s innovative approach is providing a competitive edge unlike anything this industry has seen before. In a market like 2024, your clients need the best of the best. To learn more about Canopy’s disruptive technology, reduced cost of funding loans and competitive P&L model, reach out to Josh Neumarker at 888-696-9076 or click Here to schedule an exclusive Tech-Demo and witness Canopy’s technology in action.