Full Doc News Today

Remember when lenders were fretting about Amazon rolling out a major home loan program? The new acronym that the mortgage industry was about to start using was “WACD” (What Amazon Can’t Do). We reminded ourselves that Amazon couldn’t do is to deliver high value and personalized service and build relationships that last a lifetime. Play to your strengths! One strength is keeping up with what is going on, especially in the regulatory world. Today’s L1 show at 2PM...

The other night, at the Bruce Springsteen concert in San Francisco (it was great), he did a crowd favorite, singing, “Baby I got my facts learned real good right now, you better get it straight darling: Poor man wanna be rich, rich man wanna be king, and a king ain't satisfied till he rules everything…” If you want to read a story with words like bullying, harassment, smear, empire, disgusting, and other similar “lyrics,” you can read this tale about Ro...

Every month we receive statistics showing how prices are going up, or down, and our Federal Reserve is continually mentioning controlling inflation which in turns helps mortgage rates. Inflation has finally impacted birthday celebrations. “Steakhouses Are In. Steak Is Out: Many customers are looking for a splashy night out with less red meat and lower prices.” I like chicken, so I received some good news. (Gallus domesticus fans may want to visit Prince’s south of Nashville....

Is it just my imagination or do restaurants no longer have salt and pepper shakers on the tables after COVID? Is it just my imagination or do organizations with initials that begin with “N” have trouble keeping their leadership? In August of 2023 the chief of NAR resigned, last week it was the NRA, and this week it is NAR’s turn again, this time losing Tracy Kasper to blackmail! Meanwhile, keeping on with real estate news, and realizing that anyone can sue anyone, news cam...

“My dog is really worried about the rising price of groceries, with a can of dog food now costing $3. That’s $21 in dog money.” As I travel and speak with originators, besides the regulatory environment being a concern (the latest example being the CFPB suing Freedom Mortgage yesterday), the cost to produce a loan is still a problem, and for some it is about to worsen. The last MBA’s study calculated that total loan production expenses (commissions, compensation, occu...

Hal M. writes, “Monday is a holiday. The observance reminded me of the small Italian parade we had in Maine on Columbus Day. All the marchers were under 5 foot 4.” Bah dah bum. Clients come in all shapes and sizes. An experienced loan originator will tell you, “Never tell a client about a problem until you’ve solved it.” An originator will also, when talking to a client, show them that their timing matters more than market timing. Put another way, home price ap...

The lender's total bonds issued now at $6 billion

“What did the happy real estate agent put on her sign? I have lots to be thankful for.” (Feel free to use that gem at your next presentation at Sotheby’s.) In response to yesterday’s opening paragraph comments about housing supply, from Maryland Ken Sonner sent an article about how New Zealand managed to shift its zoning to help alleviate the supply issues and lower rents. People like lists for some reason, and here is the “The 15 most in-demand ZIP codes for U...

Some things are fortuitous. For example, if Sting hadn’t been in Montserrat windsurfing when Dire Straits was recording “Money for Nothing,” would we have ever heard the iconic “I want my MTV” 38 years ago? Some things don’t go so smoothly, like insurance in places like California and Florida. Farmers Insurance is the latest home insurer to pull out of Florida’s market, labeling the move as a business decision that was “necessary to effecti...

“The world is going to come to an end tonight at midnight. Tune in tomorrow to see if it did!” Sensationalist headlines or bad predictions are tiresome at best, misinformation at worst. There is actual news, however. For example, thank you to the Knowledge Coop’s Ken Perry who sent along the latest in the Matter of ICE and Black Knight. LOs and underwriters know that the Supreme Court overturned the Biden administration’s student-debt forgiveness plan which would have...