Housing Wire

APRIL 17, 2024

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) this week announced a new product proposal for government-sponsored enterprise (GSE) Freddie Mac that would allow the agency to purchase certain single-family, closed-end second mortgages. FHFA Director Sandra Thompson explained that such options are needed in the current mortgage rate environment.

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Closing Mortgages Equity Loans 529

Housing Wire

JANUARY 25, 2024

Homeowners in California now have even fewer choices in homeowners insurance carriers. The Hartford Financial Services Group , better known as The Hartford, announced Wednesday that it would no longer issue new homeowners insurance policies in California starting in February 2024. We will be watching those efforts closely.”

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Closing As-is Marketing Finance 493

Housing Wire

DECEMBER 8, 2024

CoreLogic’s Q3 2024 Homeowner Equity Insights report showed that the total number of mortgaged homes with negative equity rose by 3.5% Conversely, positive homeowner equity increased by $425 billion since Q3 2023. Hawaii saw the biggest decreases with an average loss of $34,000 per homeowner. from the second quarter.

Equity 397

Equity Mortgages Closing 397

Housing Wire

FEBRUARY 5, 2025

Additionally, a staggering 10 million plus homeowners struggled with mortgage delinquencies. For many, losing their homes meant transitioning into the rental market, further contributing to this shift from homeowner to renter. This leaves a lot of homeowners in place. However, life often presents unexpected challenges.

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Loans Mortgages Marketing As-is 478

Housing Wire

JANUARY 15, 2025

As high home prices continue to impact the market, many homeowners are deciding to stay put in their homes. Emmy Award-winning home improvement platform This Old House conducted a survey of 2,000 homeowners on their renovation plans for 2025. This Old House reported that 48% of homeowners planned to make renovations in 2025.

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Renovation MLS Finance Closing 418

Housing Wire

JUNE 7, 2024

homeowner with a mortgage added $28,000 in equity during the year ending in March 2024 — the highest year-over-year increase since late 2022. Importantly, higher prices have also lifted some 190,000 homeowners out of negative equity , leaving only about 1.8% The average U.S. of those with mortgages underwater.”

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Equity Residential Mortgages Closing 518

Housing Wire

OCTOBER 24, 2024

Now Sandoval, who was featured earlier this year in a Wall Street Journal article , is the one knocking on the doors of homeowners facing foreclosure or other distressed circumstances. She wants to offer those homeowners the resources and care that her mom and stepdad didn’t experience. “I There is nothing like that face to face.

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Bankruptcy Equity Hard money loan Finance 448

Housing Wire

AUGUST 15, 2024

Sky-high home prices and elevated mortgage rates are putting increasing strain on homeowners. homeowners are struggling to stay in their homes, and market conditions theoretically put the most heat on those who bought after mortgage rates rose. higher relative to July 2023. This pipeline of data suggests that more U.S.

Mortgages 475

Mortgages VA loan FHA loan Staging 475

Housing Wire

MAY 30, 2024

Home equity fintech lender Point , in collaboration with its long-time financing partner Atalaya Capital Management , has successfully closed a $141 million rated asset-backed securities transaction. In November 2023, Redwood Trust partnered with Point to close on a $139 million bond secured by 1,577 home equity investment contracts.

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Closing Equity Investor Finance 448

Housing Wire

OCTOBER 31, 2024

“Unlike other home equity loans, HomeSafe Second allows eligible homeowners to access up to $1 million, depending on their home’s value and outstanding mortgages, without the need to make monthly payments,” the company said.

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Mortgages Equity Loan Officer Loans 434

Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 13, 2024

homeowners, with starts and completed foreclosures up in October,” Attom CEO Rob Barber said in a statement. While seasonal factors may slow things down briefly, we’ll be watching closely to see how these recent dynamics affect the market in the coming year.” . “ Foreclosure activity remains challenging for U.S.

Real-estate owned 448

Real-estate owned Mortgages Closing Banks 448

Housing Wire

JANUARY 15, 2025

Rising personal home insurance rates, fueled by escalating claims costs, increasing property values and the growing frequency of natural disasters, will all have a profound impact on market dynamics and homeowners insurance costs. For real estate professionals and mortgage lenders, these shifts present both challenges and opportunities.

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Marketing Commercial Mortgages Branding 369

Housing Wire

JANUARY 8, 2025

On Wednesday, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) took protective measures by issuing a proclamation that allows national banks, federal savings associations, and federal branches and agencies of foreign banks to close their offices in areas of California affected by the fires.

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Banks As-is Development Closing 418

Housing Wire

FEBRUARY 23, 2024

Mortgage servicers, regulators and economists are closely watching the delinquency rates for Federal Housing Administration (FHA) loans following a spike in the fourth quarter of 2023. In Florida, the departure of many insurers and reinsurers has resulted in homeowners paying an average of nearly $4,000 a year, almost three times the U.S.

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Industrial Closing FHA loan Loans 482

Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 19, 2024

While the co-chairs of the caucus wrote that they “applaud” Thompson and the FHFA’s efforts to promote homeownership for low-income Americans, they believe that the pilot program will not help to achieve the goal of “finding ways to ‘responsibly reduce closing costs for homeowners in a safe and sound manner.’”

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Title Title search Closing costs Loans 418

Housing Wire

FEBRUARY 19, 2024

Rapid home price appreciation can sometimes help slow the rate of lost equity as it did in 2021, when distressed homeowners lost an average of $377 a month. Accelerating home price appreciation can even sometimes help reverse the trend completely as it did in 2023, when distressed homeowners gained an average of $255 a month in equity.

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Equity Purchase and sale agreement Loans Mortgages 468

Housing Wire

OCTOBER 18, 2024

Indiana-based lender Ruoff Mortgage is making a move designed to help more homeowners get into new homes with ease. We have partnered with Calque to provide better options to those customers, including the ability to close immediately on a new home before putting their current home on the market.”

Purchase and sale agreement 448

Purchase and sale agreement Mortgages Equity Finance 448

Housing Wire

MARCH 4, 2025

The takeaway from the pending sales numbers is that it takes roughly 35 days on average for sales to close, so homes in contract now will generally close in March, Simonsen wrote. So many homeowners likely feel trapped because they bought their current place when rates were really low.

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Mortgages Sales Finance Closing 484

Housing Wire

MARCH 12, 2025

The meeting focused on the implications for Black homeowners and agents. Kalin also recommended that agents help their clients consider the time and cost of rebuilding , homeowners insurance proceeds, temporary housing expenses, and the benefits of selling for cash value versus rebuilding.

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Agents Construction As-is Closing 360

Housing Wire

DECEMBER 9, 2024

After many years of serving consumers, EasyKnock has closed its doors, a message on the companys website states. New York-based EasyKnocks business model allowed homeowners to sell their properties to the company but remain as renters while receiving cash for their financial needs. In 2018, the company raised $3.5

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Equity Investor Residential Closing 370

Housing Wire

JANUARY 27, 2025

In a statement provided to HousingWire , the Community Home Lenders of America (CHLA) lauded the results of the report as evidence of a positive difference in the financial affairs of homeowners.

Loans 369

Loans Closing costs Mortgages Closing 369

Housing Wire

OCTOBER 19, 2023

In late August, when mortgage rates were well over 7% and beginning their climb toward 8%, Jeff Anderson had a client do what few other homeowners are willing to do: She gave up her 4% mortgage rate. At closing, my client will get $10,000 of cash up-front. You’re probably thinking, “Uh, why on earth would she do that?”

Mortgages 497

Mortgages FHA loan Equity Loans 497

Housing Wire

FEBRUARY 28, 2024

Like theEasyKnock team, our distinguished group of investors recognize the critical need for countless American homeowners to improve their financial well-being.

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Closing Equity Investor Development 459

Housing Wire

FEBRUARY 3, 2025

It also ties into architects and builders creating smaller, denser homes to help close the affordable housing supply gap. Strickland said that 75% of the loans she closed last year were government loans, adding that all of them were purchase money. I think the same could be said for most in my industry, she added.

Debt-to-income ratio 431

Debt-to-income ratio Loans VA loan FHA loan 431

Housing Wire

FEBRUARY 3, 2025

2021 in federal court in Houston, the suit accused Feldman & Feldman of defaming EasyKnock in a post the law firm made on its website cautioning consumers to scrutinize the companys transactions with financially distressed homeowners. Originally filed by EasyKnock in Nov. The platform shut down its operations in early December 2024.

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Lending Equity Investor Residential 395

Housing Wire

DECEMBER 9, 2024

If 2024 was a rollercoaster, 2025 is shaping up to be a championship gameand every buyer , seller and homeowner has a shot at winning big. Save strategically: Even with down payment assistance, youll need some savings for earnest money and closing costs. Many sellers are offering to cover 2-3% of closing costs.

Mortgages 370

Mortgages FHA loan Closing costs Staging 370

Housing Wire

MARCH 14, 2025

Homeowners are stuck Many homeowners who locked in low-interest rates in prior years are hesitant to sell. This creates a unique challenge for mortgage professionals, who must provide creative financing strategies to help homeowners see the benefits of moving despite higher rates. With rates hovering around 6.5%

Mortgages 363

Mortgages Loan Officer Marketing Loans 363

Housing Wire

MARCH 17, 2025

Recent coverage from the Wall Street Journal detailed several sellers’ experiences when attempting to close listings due to the blacklist, which is maintained by Fannie and includes properties that the GSE deems inadequate in terms of property insurance or repairs.

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Sales Mortgages Design Closing 334

Housing Wire

MARCH 10, 2025

“Over the last decade or so, we have seen both homeowner and rental vacancy rates drop to record lows,” she said last week. “The homeowner vacancy rate should be closer to 1.5% At 2024’s pace, closing the gap would take 7.5 or 2%, and it’s still just barely above 1%. during the year, and 1.04

Construction 361

Construction New Construction Closing As-is 361

Housing Wire

OCTOBER 28, 2024

Remaining diligent to identify opportunities Affordability challenges spurred by rising home prices and stubborn interest rates are impacting both prospective borrower and homeowner behavior. As a result, many potential buyers, along with current homeowners looking to refinance, are sitting tight in the hopes that rates will eventually drop.

Loan Officer 435

Loan Officer Pre-approval Technology Loans 435

Housing Wire

MARCH 11, 2025

The conversation started like any typical interaction with a homeowner looking to sell their property. Delayed discovery Many fraudulent transactions go undetected until months after closing. Be cautious of urgency If a seller insists on a fast, remote closing, take extra care to verify legitimacy. Use a service.

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Agents MLS Land Sales 361

Housing Wire

DECEMBER 13, 2024

Malibu’s Franklin Fire torched over 4,000 acres this week in one of the country’s most expensive housing markets, putting more pressure on homeowners insurance premiums in a state that is already facing an insurance crisis. What will happen to insurance costs in California now?

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Residential Development As-is Closing 370

Housing Wire

MARCH 14, 2025

These milestones, combined with successful execution of our remaining operational initiatives, positioned us to close 2024 with our largest production month since 2022. Kristen Sieffert We also overhauled our data and reporting infrastructure using an A.I. driven tool, enabling us to capitalize on trends that drive performance, she said.

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Branding Equity Lending Finance 356

Housing Wire

FEBRUARY 20, 2025

” While more Black Americans are becoming homeowners, affordability remains a significant hurdle. Birmingham, Alabama (29.5%) and Memphis, Tennessee (29.0%) follow closely behind. Louis ranks as the most affordable market for typical Black households, with 30.3% of listings within reach.

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Lending Marketing Closing As-is 364

Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 27, 2024

Saving for the down payment and closing costs takes time, sacrifice and determination. They are now a homeowner. And for many Americans, becoming a homeowner means they are creating wealth through equity, which in turn creates generational wealth and confers all the benefits we in this industry understand so well.

Equity 397

Equity Mortgages Industrial Closing costs 397

Housing Wire

FEBRUARY 24, 2025

In 2024, we saw a notable increase in buyer demand when mortgage rates got close to 6%. The economy-employment-home sales cycle this time around has an added wrinkle which is homeowners all having ultra-low mortgage rates. A price cut today hopefully generates an offer in March for a sale that closes in April.

Sales 495

Sales Mortgages As-is Marketing 495

Housing Wire

FEBRUARY 12, 2025

Buyer after closing Dear (Buyer Name), It was a pleasure working with you! Co-broke agent after closing Dear (Agent Name), It was a pleasure working with you on the sale of (Address)! Lender/attorney after a tough closing Dear (Vendor), I know this wasnt an easy one, but thank you for all your help getting us to the closing table.

Agents 359

Agents Closing As-is Land 359