I am currently in the Pacific Daylight Time zone for the Mortgage Collaborative conference near San Diego. Do time zones ever make the headlines? Rarely - but North Korea is establishing its own time zone - pulling back its current standard time by 30 minutes so times in North & South Korea will no longer be consistent. Consistency, or lack thereof, is important in parenting and rule making, and I received this note from a well-known mortgage attorney. "The CFPB is pretty inconsistent with MSAs enforcement and guidance by allowing some MSAs like AHS MSAs with real estate brokerages to continue yet publicly suggesting/exclaiming all MSAs are illegal kickbacks. Clearly this is not the case. How can the CFPB say this when it is closing out MSA investigations with Letters notifying the parties they found 'No Findings of Concern'?"

In product news, the dealer arm of Angel Oak, AOC Securities, is in the market purchasing non-performing loans. Angel Oak has multiple proven entities in the mortgage space including a $5b asset manager, a mortgage company, a consulting group, and a capital advisors group. "Mortgages are our area of expertise. We have purchased loans in every state and have earned the trust of many community banks and lenders. We will buy investor fallout and 'scratch & dent' loans, sub-performing, delinquent and non-performing loans. We work fast and give you our full attention whether you are selling a single loan or a pool of hundreds. Please reach out to Steven Ammann to clean up your balance sheet and recapitalize today."

And in training, Freedom Wholesale Mortgage, First Funding, Arch MI, Goldome Financial, ServiceLink, PCV Murcor, Lenders Compliance Group, Fidelity National Title partner to show how TRID Training can grow partner business together.  On October 3rd, 2015 TRID goes into effect to make it easier for consumers to understand their loan options. These Rules will change the way Realtors, Lenders, Title Companies and any other Service Provider will operate.  Learn how to train and educate your real estate industry partners on the new TILA-RESPA Integrated Disclosure rules and how Freedom Mortgage systems will work to insure you are compliant with the new rules.  Join us at one of these FREE workshops: Carlsbad, CA Tuesday, August 11^th , Irvine, CA Wednesday, August 12^th, , Los Angeles, CA Thursday, August 13^th, Phoenix, AZ August 19^th, Las Vegas, NV August 20^th and Honolulu, HI August 25^th.

ditech Correspondent Funding is offering web based client development sessions including topics such as mortgage basics, processing, underwriting and program specific sessions. Click here for details in ditech's live, recorded, and unlisted sessions for the month of August.

Get in-depth analysis and guidance on the new HMDA Rule September 20-22 in Washington D.C. with MBA's Regulatory Compliance Conference. Find out what's happening now and what's expected for examinations and enforcement. Litigation issues, fair lending review, vendor management, MSAs and JVs, plus much more, will also be covered. Click the link to view event details and registration information.

Plaza's Reverse Mortgage Originating Partners should register for its August 12th HECM financial assessment property charge and credit standing webinar. Effective for case numbers assigned on or after April 27, 2015, a Financial Assessment of all prospective borrowers must be completed prior to Reverse Mortgage loan approval. This informational webinar will explain Plaza's new guidelines and procedures to comply with the requirements set forth in Mortgagee Letter 2014-22 and the HECM Financial Assessment and Property Charge Guide.

Prepared for the new underwriting environment? On September 9-11 in Dallas Texas, MBA is providing Risk Management, QA & Fraud Prevention Forum. Prepare for the new lending environment with MBA's underwriting and compliance track session.

In fact, the MBA offers a catalog of programs to aid Residential loan production staff. Workshops, live webinars, instructor guided online, classroom, recordings and self-study options are all available for your training needs.  Visit MBA's online site for specific topics and dates.

Not only does CMG Financial offer a plethora of loan programs for retail, wholesale and correspondent lending clients; it also provides a mishmash of entertaining and informative news on its website. With an array of topics from yard sale tips through important industry information; CMG's website is worth browsing.

I don't know how folks keep up on the wholesale & lender changes going on out there, so let's play some major catch up with changes. As always, it is best to read the full bulletin and/or contact the lender to obtain the latest...

United Wholesale Mortgage has announced the release of UClose, a tool that will allow mortgage brokers to close their loans within an hour of receiving their clear to close. "This exclusive online tool will revolutionize the way brokers and correspondents close loans, as they will be taking control of the closing process, generating closing documents and scheduling the closing directly with their title company. 'UClose will give brokers complete control over the closing process, enabling them to take borrowers from clear-to-close to closing in just six clicks,' said Mat Ishbia, president and CEO of United Wholesale Mortgage. UClose was built strategically to comply with the upcoming TILA-RESPA Integrated Disclosure Rule (TRID), offering an even stronger advantage for brokers and correspondents when TRID goes into effect in October."

And last month United Wholesale Mortgage announced an interest-only financing program available to qualified borrowers who utilize UWM's extensive broker network for their mortgage needs. "In addition to a required 20 percent down payment on the cost of a loan, UWM will only accept borrowers with minimum FICO scores of 720 and a 42 debt-to-income ratio to participate in the interest-only program. Borrowers will be required to begin paying down the principal of the loan after 10 years. Bloomberg News conducted a brief interview with UWM CEO Mat Ishbia regarding UWM interest-only financing for homeowners."

State of Texas Cash-Out Refinance options are now available from Impac Mortgage Wholesale. Some of the highlights include eligibility if owner occupied, Once a Texas Section 50(a)(6), always a Texas Section 50(a)(6), $150,000 maximum cash-out overlay has been removed, All Texas Cash-Out Rules are applicable, Not a Texas Section 50(a)(6) initially, and a second lien considered a rate and term refinance. Visit Impac Wholesale website for details on Texas Cash-Out Refinance options.

Mountain West Financial Wholesale posted multiple UW guideline additions and changes. Updates include DU Refi Plus impound requirement addition. In California, impounds are required for loans with LTV>90%. For all other, impounds are required for loans with LTV>80.01%. Also, there is an addition to its MWF Jumbo R. Appraisal will be submitted to investor for appraisal review prior to docs with an estimation of 3 - 5 days for review by investor.

A recent newsletter from LDWholesale includes updates such as the departing current residence topic has been updated to remove the 30% equity requirement for Fannie Mae loans; clarification on the departing current residence guidelines for other agencies is also provided. The Minimum Reserve Requirements topic has been updated based on Fannie Mae's recent announcement and minimum reserve requirements for other agencies are also provided.

loanDepot, LLC, announced plans to offer a new home equity product, second mortgages. "loanDepot is the first marketplace lender to offer American consumers a choice of credit products through purchase and refinance home loans, unsecured personal loans, and now home equity loans on one convenient tech-enabled lending platform...Loan amounts ranging from $25,000 to $250,000 for cash-out financing or home purchase, up to 95% LTV for certain borrowers and transactions, fixed terms up to 30 years, and no pre-payment penalties so borrowers can pay off principal anytime."

As a reminder, a while back NYCB expanded New York Community Bank's wholesale origination and correspondent loan purchases while winding down such activities conducted by NYCB Mortgage Company, LLC. NYCB began taking all new loan registrations in the name of the Bank. This shift had no impact on any of its wholesale, correspondent, or loan servicing teams.

From a ways back a reminder from NYBC Mortgage Banking that all new loans registrations were taken in New York Community Bank's name. As previously communicated, it has expanded the Bank's existing wholesale originations and correspondent loan purchases and has now concluded all pipeline activity related to its subsidiary, NYCB Mortgage Company, LLC. In addition, Effective 08.02.15, our external-facing business-to-business trade name will be NYCB Mortgage Banking.

In June NewLeaf Wholesale released a new Bank Statement product. This product is a Non-QM program designed for self-employed borrowers who do not meet traditional income qualification methods.

Plaza Wholesale announced its Reverse Mortgage division moved to a new location, and anyone who'd like to say "hello" should use phone number (858) 404-0166.

Carrington Mortgage Services announced the availability of "The Carrington Loan" through its Wholesale Lending Division. Some of its unique features include: no closing costs, appraisal fees, or lender financing fees, Carrington pays all eligible loan costs as lender credits, if any unanticipated lender costs arise, Carrington will issue a credit to cover them. This may include additional title or escrow service charges from the title or settlement company. Click here to visit Carrington's website.

First Community Mortgage recent guideline changes include topics such as: deferred installment debt for LP transactions; borrowers may qualify with outstanding IRS installment agreements on FHA and VA. A letter from the IRS stating the terms and approval of the installment agreement and evidence of 3 payments have been made are required. Click the link to view detailed Changes to FCM's underwriting guidelines.

Citi has updated its correspondent bulletin to include credit policy updates and overlays. Some updates include coverage for hazard insurance, product/program credit policy updates, and FHA Streamline refinances interim interest. Updates also include notices regarding its correspondent appraisal validation program and elimination of desktop underwriting fees. Log into Citi's website to view its latest bulletin.

Banc Home Loans made changes to its Master Loan Purchase Agreement, Power of Attorney, and Sellers Guide. Revised documents have been posted to its website.

ditech will begin purchasing Qualified Mortgages that fall into the Rebuttable Presumption classification and which otherwise meet its loan purchase eligibility requirements available to approved clients. For additional information on Qualified Mortgage Documentation requirements, refer to bulletin 2014-054.  

Kinecta Federal Credit Union has clarified its requirements for letters of explanation. For more information, view its document.

Guaranteed Rate introduced the world's first Digital Mortgage in June as only a soft launch, and customer response was overwhelmingly positive. Reportedly more than 2,500 customers have chosen the new Digital Mortgage process within weeks of its release. Digital Mortgage reports to make it easier to move through the mortgage application, approval and appraisal process.  Official news release including bios is available here.

Turning to the markets, since there is nowhere else to turn, I have decided to make a prediction: next month the Fed will either leave short term rates alone or move them higher. Bold, I know... but every piece of economic information we receive now is analyzed in the context of how it might move short term rates. On Friday, after the pretty-much-as-expected employment data was released, Fed funds futures began pricing in a 75% chance of a rate hike at the FOMC's September meeting. The 2-year note sold off despite large gains at the 10 and 30-year maturities. 5, 10, and 30-year yields are now all below their highs of March, despite the much-reported global bond market sell-off.

But we're heading into the middle of August, and we have a whole bushel of economic news to distract us. Today is something called the "Labor Market Conditions Index Change." Tomorrow is Nonfarm Productivity, Unit Labor Costs, and June Wholesale Inventories, along with a $24 billion 3-year note auction. On Hump Day we have a June JOLTS figure (job openings) and a $24 billion 10-year note auction. Thursday we pick up a little steam with Initial Jobless Claims and Retail Sales (indicating if we're buying anything out there), along with the July Export Price ex-ag and Import Prices ex-oil and the results from the $16 billion 30-year bond auction. We finish the week with the July Producer Price Index, the July Industrial Production and Capacity Utilization couplet, and a bevy of August Michigan Sentiment numbers.

And for numbers we had a 2.17% close on the 10-year Friday and this morning we're at 2.20% with agency MBS prices worse .125.