How rookie agents are faring during the pandemic When the restaurant Tom Hunt worked at as a server temporarily shut down during the spring of 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, he decided it was the right time to pursue his longtime desire of becoming a real estate agent. “I’ve always been

Flagstar to pay .6M over flood insurance violations The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) issued a consent order against Michigan-based Flagstar Bank that levies a $3.62 million civil penalty over violations of the Flood Disaster Protection Act,the regulator said on Thursday. The c

Court authorizes class action against Carrington over servicing fees The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit ruled on Wednesday that borrowers can pursue a class action lawsuit against Carrington Mortgage Services regarding the fees it applied when collecting payments online o

The emerging ESG market is a diamond in the rough When the terms “green” or “ESG” are broached in polite company, eyes have a tendency to roll. It’s natural for the mind to wander toward a parade of green branding campaigns that may be aspirational in messaging but rarely result i

Purchase mortgage volume projected to clear .1T in ’22, ’23 Despite the expected rise in interest rates, the single-family housing market will continue to boom in 2022, according to a report published by Freddie Mac this week. Sam Khater, chief economist at Freddie Mac, said in a statement t

CFPB Increases Civil Penalty for RESPA Violations The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) announced it increased the maximum of each civil penalty under its jurisdiction, including the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA). The adjustments are required by the Federal Civil Penalties

Coalition pushes big changes to GSE Duty to Serve proposals FHFA, Federal Housing Finance Agency On the heels of the Federal Housing Finance Agency’s rejection of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac’s Duty to Serve plans, a coalition of housing groups have some bold ideas for how to beef them up.

“I don’t want to say we’re archaic”: Appraisal Institute president vows reform

“I don’t want to say we’re archaic”: Appraisal Institute president vows reform Jody Bishop, president of Appraisal Institute The residential real estate appraisal industry is staring at a fork in the road. The latest reminder is a report released Wednesday from the Appraisal Subcommit

Did existing home sales peak in 2021? The National Association of Realtors reported that existing home sales for December came in as a miss of estimates at 6.18 million. This number is in line with my sales range for 2021 of 5.84 million to 6.2 million, but a tad higher than my existing home sa

Buyers viewed just eight homes before making their purchase In 2021, homebuyers who successfully purchased a home viewed a median of only eight properties before completing their transaction, according to a report by the National Association of Realtors, published on Tuesday. NAR Research has tr