Tue, Dec 24 2013, 11:46 AM
A
couple was Christmas shopping at the mall. The wife turns around to
find that her husband had disappeared. Upset, she calls him on his
cellpho...
Mon, Dec 23 2013, 10:04 AM
Before
we delve into the agency, lender, and investor news, here is some
holiday cheer....maybe. On December 9th, the Federal Reserve released its...
Fri, Dec 20 2013, 10:44 AM
Borrowers
have saved countless billions by refinancing over the last few years.
But they aren't the only ones saving money: the Treasury Departmen...
Thu, Dec 19 2013, 10:30 AM
Sometimes
common sense seems to leave the markets, but then again, traders are
smarter than the rest of us, right? "Beginning in January, the Comm...
Wed, Dec 18 2013, 11:56 AM
US household net worth was
$77 trillion as of the end of Q3, up $1.9T Q/Q. In the third quarter, the
value of corporate equities and mutual funds o...
Tue, Dec 17 2013, 10:59 AM
Clients of Franklin American received this e-mail yesterday: “Due to the market environment and regulatory concerns, Franklin American will be remo...
Mon, Dec 16 2013, 10:18 AM
The value of
US pensions has soared this year. Per JPMorgan Chase, pensions now cover 96% of future obligations! Pension values
have seen the bi...
Fri, Dec 13 2013, 10:11 AM
The
old saying goes, "If there is only one attorney in a town, he'll starve to
death. If there are two attorneys in a town, they'll both get rich." ...
Wed, Dec 11 2013, 10:58 AM
Five US regulators writing the Volcker
rule have ended three years of debate and approved a ban on proprietary
trading by some banks. The Commodit...
Tue, Dec 10 2013, 10:03 AM
Back in the '00s I remember watching
a Discovery Channel show on people summiting Mt. Everest. One of the amateur
climbers matter-of-factly said tha...
Mon, Dec 9 2013, 9:30 AM
My
Dad called me yesterday, wondering if they delivered e-mail on Sundays.
After all, the post office is delivering on Sundays for Amazon, right? ...
Fri, Dec 6 2013, 10:40 AM
In a speech this week to the Consumer Federation of America Consumer Finance Protection Bureau’s Director Richard Cordray said that it is a m...
Thu, Dec 5 2013, 10:37 AM
"A group of government regulators out
hiking in the Artic has managed to revive a caveman who was frozen for
thousands of years. Communications so f...
Wed, Dec 4 2013, 10:49 AM
If you have questions about affiliate fees, and what fees are included in the 3% threshold, the MBA has answers! Here you go , and one more her...
Tue, Dec 3 2013, 10:48 AM
A ccording to the FDIC, there are around 96,341 bank branches
in the country vs. 97,340 a year ago (999 were closed). But SNL reports
bank and...
Mon, Dec 2 2013, 9:25 AM
Planning
on giving out a few things for the holidays to special clients? Think
twice about it! Ken Perry writes, “Hey Rob, as we get closer to the...
Wed, Nov 27 2013, 10:23 AM
A new housing brief from the U.S. Census Bureau shows that median home values in many small counties across the nation held steady after the most re...
Tue, Nov 26 2013, 9:55 AM
In August
2015 there will be a change to the mandatory waiting period (“effective
August 2015 a home BUYER will now have a MANDATORY 3 day waiti...
Mon, Nov 25 2013, 10:12 AM
The
last survey I took was regarding how happy I was with my long-distance
carrier, and ended with me hanging up right in the middle of the
age-...
Sat, Nov 23 2013, 3:58 PM
A new study by PayScale finds “Gen Y”
aged 35 years and younger are having a hard time out there. About 16%
who have a job are living at home st...
Fri, Nov 22 2013, 9:31 AM
There
is an old joke in advertising that says, "Half of all advertising money is
wasted. The trick is knowing which half." Companies continue to tak...
Thu, Nov 21 2013, 10:30 AM
CFPB announced its first enforcement action against a payday lender , with $14 million in reimbursements and a $5 million penalty .
33 bus...
Wed, Nov 20 2013, 9:18 AM
Flagstar Bank has spread the word that Flagstar is adding an option for “ VA IRRRL Other Servicer ”
to use AVM rather than an appraisal up to 100% L...
Tue, Nov 19 2013, 10:02 AM
For today’s history lesson, exactly 150 years ago US President Abraham
Lincoln delivered the two minute Gettysburg Address. Sometimes it feels
lik...
Mon, Nov 18 2013, 9:20 AM
There is an abundance of smaller lenders who
would rather focus on funding loans than on focus on compliance, and an
abundance of companies with...
Fri, Nov 15 2013, 10:17 AM
According to Morningstar, Vanguard has overtaken Pimco as the world's largest bond mutual fund
with $288B of assets at the end of Oct. vs. $248B f...
Thu, Nov 14 2013, 10:14 AM
Research shows that in seven years, "Gen Y" consumers will represent 40% of the US workforce. Are you ready for them? Are they ready to move out of th...
Wed, Nov 13 2013, 9:52 AM
Aside from not having to wear ties on Fridays, or even collared
shirts for that matter, the boys and girls over at Barclays have
released their 3 ...
Tue, Nov 12 2013, 10:21 AM
Generally speaking, home values are going up, and we receive plenty
of statistics every month slicing and dicing sales and values. The
latest is f...
Mon, Nov 11 2013, 11:48 AM
Here in Texas, how can anyone go through Waco without visiting the
Dr. Pepper Museum? For you sales folks, 10AM and 2PM and two are low
points in ...
Fri, Nov 8 2013, 9:58 AM
In this video , Wells Fargo voices its stance on the upcoming changes.
The CFPB
gave renewed reason for many lenders to contemplate taking their...
Thu, Nov 7 2013, 9:46 AM
No, I am not talking about the Castle & Cooke/CFPB situation,
expected to be positively resolved any day now. No, I am talking about
that not only...
Wed, Nov 6 2013, 10:35 AM
As the industry waits for Nationstar's earnings call tomorrow, and
hoping all the rumors of this venture-capital-owned lender shutting down
a chan...
Tue, Nov 5 2013, 10:37 AM
I like to say that last week's MBA conference was a compliance &
regulatory conference that happened to include some mortgage banking
information....
Mon, Nov 4 2013, 9:36 AM
The industry is hoping for some good news from Nationstar Thursday at 9AM EST, which announced last week that its 3 rd quarter earnings and busines...
Fri, Nov 1 2013, 9:59 AM
Provident Funding, Stearns Lending, Fifth Third Mortgage, Flagstar
Bank, United Wholesale Mortgage, Nationstar Mortgage, New York Community
Bank, ...
Thu, Oct 31 2013, 10:29 AM
I am 100% positive that this announcement is not the last one like it we'll see in the next several months, if not days. " SunTrust Mortgage to Exit B...
Wed, Oct 30 2013, 10:29 AM
I had a chance to meet some very good folks here at the MBA
conference in Washington DC - there are some genuinely good people in
this industry. T...
Tue, Oct 29 2013, 9:44 AM
Of the 45 educational sessions here at the MBA conference, 87 of them
have to do with QM. (No, that is not a misprint.) If you have to ask
the per...
Mon, Oct 28 2013, 9:09 AM
I probably use about 5% of
my fancy phone's capacities, and barely know how to get to e-mail, the
internet, and YouTube on my computer. But walkin...
Fri, Oct 25 2013, 9:43 AM
The FHFA announced that Fannie/Freddie loan limits will not be reduced for at least six months
and any such reduction will occur after a six-month...
Thu, Oct 24 2013, 9:20 AM
With recent changes in QM/ATR rules along with intolerance for any
error which may impinge marketability or the ability to expeditiously
foreclose...
Wed, Oct 23 2013, 10:11 AM
I am spending a couple days in Kansas before heading to North
Carolina, and around here the old saying goes, "The older the buck, the
stiffer the ...
Tue, Oct 22 2013, 9:35 AM
I travel to a lot of engagements (this week is Los Angeles, Kansas,
and North Carolina, and then to DC for the conference) and am jealous of
my co...
Mon, Oct 21 2013, 9:41 AM
Some of the information out there is "about as reliable as a
Realtor's photograph." But rumors continue to swirl about the health of
companies. On...
Fri, Oct 18 2013, 9:57 AM
It is a proven fact that ghosts, ghouls, vampires, werewolves, and
the like all live forever. (I either read it in the National Enquirer or
Nation...
Thu, Oct 17 2013, 10:50 AM
LA Dodgers' Tommy Lasorda reportedly said, "I found out that it's not
good to talk about my troubles. Eighty percent of the people who hear
them d...
Wed, Oct 16 2013, 10:56 AM
A biologist, a chemist, and a statistician are out hunting. The
biologist shoots at a deer and misses 5 feet to the left, the chemist
takes a shot...
Tue, Oct 15 2013, 9:53 AM
Welcome to "National Aging in Place" Week (October 15-21). No, this
doesn't mean sitting in that 10-yr old office chair, slouched over your
comput...
Fri, Oct 11 2013, 11:44 AM
Entities like title companies, real estate agencies, home inspection
services, etc. don't mind this statistic, but lenders sure do: the
National A...