Servicing Guide News Today

Here in the Hill Country near Austin, Texas, there’s an active market of sellers and buyers of real estate. It is a safe bet that most use agents; around 90 percent of buyers use them, and Clever released data on average real estate commission rates in the U.S. as they stand now. Clever found that on the median-priced home of $431,000, the average U.S. home seller pays real estate commission fees of about $23,662. In a survey of 630 partner agents, the average real estate commission rate ...

Yesterday’s Commentary had a note about Atlantic Bay’s “LinkedIn traffic picking up.” I have been assured by Atlantic Bay’s CEO that the company continues to enjoy its 27 years in business and will remain independent! I apologize for any confusion yesterday’s note caused, and the Commentary continues. The conference in New Orleans also continues, with talk of repurchases, credit & verification costs skyrocketing (you’ll see it on your ...

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...

On December 20, Fannie Mae issued SVC-2023-06, announcing updates made to its Servicing Guide. The updates include new financial reporting requirements requiring large non-depository...

Fannie Mae recently launched a new Sponsor-Dedicated Workforce Housing product aimed at mitigating the shortage of affordable housing available for middle-income renters. Fannie Maes goal of...

“I threw my phone from the roof, and it broke. I guess airplane mode wasn’t working.” Plenty of folks will be traveling soon. Here’s some trivia for tomorrow at the dinner table! (One wonders if residential lending is heading in this direction) … But there are only 12 passenger airlines in the United States. That’s up from 10 just a few years ago but down from about 80 airlines at the peak industry in the 1980s due to a series of bankruptcies and mergers...

If you’re really happy when a scheduled conference or Zoom call is cancelled, does that mean you’re in the wrong line of work? (Asking for a friend.) The demand for Team or Zoom calls certainly skyrocketed during the pandemic, although as companies have moved back into the office to some extent, the demand for them has dropped. Supply and demand determine mortgage pricing, so there is little use in a lender originating loans if there is no demand by investors or portfolios for thos...

“I got stuck in a conversation with some wealthy people and one woman asked me how my investments were doing. I replied that both avocadoes should be ripe by tomorrow.” Food prices are an everyday reminder of inflation on the spending side of the equation, but on the flip side, plenty of people don’t know where to put their savings these days. One can pick up additional income on savings in places like the perfectly safe TreasuryDirect account and earn over 4 percent on as l...

“Thirty years ago, we had Bob Hope, Johnny Cash, and Steve Jobs. Today we have no hope, no cash, and no jobs. We are all praying nothing happens to Kevin Bacon.” “Bringing home the bacon” is something that has become strained for tens of thousands in our biz when they lose their job. I’ve been deluged with Wells Fargo folks wanting to change their email to their home email, and while this has always given me insight (in advance, often) into companies closing, t...

It’s Thursday. What should we talk about today? Elon Musk’s bid for Twitter? How about the jump in adjustable-rate locks as evidenced by the MBA’s figures? (Are your LOs well-versed in them?) Their share of applications last week was at 7.4 percent, which was the highest share since June 2019. How about this unique measure of wage inflation? Last night in Manhattan I was chatting with a chef who, when COVID hit, had moved from a fancy restaurant to become a personal chef at ...