Friday: time for some random non-mortgage stuff. Everyone knows that if you lose one sense, your other senses become enhanced. Which is why people with no sense of humor have a heightened sense of self-importance. Jeff Bezos… your divorce so bad you’re going to leave Earth? That’s something! Every state (watch, whenever I use the term “every” folks find exceptions… which is fine, it’s how I learn) has a state mineral, or a mammal, or a motto. What about a state gun? A state firearm has only been designated by eight of the fifty states in the U.S: Alaska, Arizona, Utah, Indiana, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Tennessee. Some years ago, the U.S. had 78,000 fewer truck drivers than it needed. Now that shortfall is 280,000. As a result, truckers are getting perks they weren’t just a few years ago. Lastly, do you like lobster? Due to limited supply and high demand, lobster’s back to being expensive. The wholesale price of live, 1.25-pound lobsters in New England was $9.01 per pound on May 1, which was up $2.70 per pound compared to May 1, 2020. (Today’s audio version of the commentary is available here. This week’s is sponsored by MCT and today features Part Two of an interview with Phil Rasori on the economics of buy and sell side execution benefits of BAM Marketplace, the world's first truly open loan exchange between unapproved counterparties.)

Lender Services and Products

Did you know the FFIEC has outlined that financial institutions MUST have a social media risk management program? Surprise! Under this guidance, lenders are required to monitor and control social media related to their brand as if it were traditional advertising. This also means social media must be archived to meet state record retention laws. Unsure about advertising record retention requirements? Check out ActiveComply’s Mortgage Advertising Record Retention Requirements by State Geomap to see individual state requirements. Failure to meet monitoring and archival requirements may result in regulatory audits, penalties, and even citations. ActiveComply helps lenders meet both responsibilities through our compliance system technology: find all company and LO accounts related to your brand, examine profiles for NMLS IDs, Equal Housing information, and company specific disclosures. Ensure post content is compliant and flag for inappropriate or political terms  (image scanning included). Visit activecomply.com today to learn more.

Curious how Connector by Velma® can solve your ECOA - Adverse Action headaches? Learn how Connector reduces risk, rescues at-risk prospects, eliminates hassles, and saves time for your sales and operations teams. All by extending your LOS (Encompass). Oh, and you will never need to print out and stuff another NOIA letter again!

Every loan officer wants an edge on the competition. Some rely on relationships while others rely on technology. We are a team of loan officers who believe in both. PMI Rate Pro provides quotes from all 6 national PMI providers instantly, allowing you to focus on what matters. With PMI Rate Pro, homebuyers save an average of $40 on monthly premiums and over $3,600 on single premiums and you save valuable time while always ensuring the best price for your buyers. With the average loan officer shopping only 2-to-3 MI providers, PMI Rate Pro provides a significant competitive advantage at an affordable price. We integrate with your current tech solutions via a state-of-the-art API or you can simply login to our easy-to-use platform. Visit www.pmiratepro.com today for a Free 2 Week Trial and get back to doing what you do best - winning deals.

Check out Freedom Mortgage’s recently enhanced VA and FHA pricing! Enjoy 2 Business Day Priority Purchase Underwriting and a (.250) LLPA incentive for all Conventional, VA, and FHA purchases with the Freedom Mortgage Wholesale Division’s Big Spring Purchase Tee Off! Offer a hole in one experience with every new Conventional, VA, and FHA purchase! Plus, offer more buying power for your Jumbo VA borrowers with no maximum loan amount and no down payment for eligible* VA borrowers. To learn more, check out our rate sheet or email AskFreedom@FreedomWholesale.com to have an Account Executive contact you. (*Subject to credit approval, requires full entitlement; for purchases and cash-out refinances only and not applicable for loan amounts<= $144,000. For IRRRLs, VA will continue to guaranty 25% of the loan amount without regard to the Veteran’s available entitlement and/or county loan limits.)

Capital Markets

Is your current pricing engine causing inefficiencies within your daily workflow? Mortech, a Zillow Group business, has a pricing engine that offers lenders best execution pricing across supported investors that includes lock workflows, change in circumstance historical pricing, and live MI quoting. Their industry-leading PPE allows you to align your pricing strategy with your business model through customizable margins and adjustments in a single platform. “Before Mortech we had no centralized place where all of our pricing was. With the help of their PPE, we are now able to have all relevant rate info for our lenders in one location. The support from Mortech has been outstanding,” said Thomas O’Donnell, Partner-Residential Mortgage Loan, Barton Creek Lending Group. Compared to other PPEs, Mortech wins with scalable pricing, variable contract terms, and unparalleled support. To learn how you can streamline your workflow with Mortech’s pricing engine, contact Mortech Sales.

Bit of a seesaw day in the bond market yesterday. May Consumer Prices “showed hotter than expected” inflation readings for both the headline and core levels though there was an underwhelming 30-year bond offering. On a year-over-year basis, total CPI was up 5.0 percent, the largest increase since August 2008, while core CPI posted its largest year-over-year increase (at 3.8 percent) since June 1992. Remember, the numbers were always going to have some noise in them considering the lockdowns of last year. Lenders are seeing stable rates, and sure enough, the Primary Mortgage Market Survey from Freddie Mac for the week ending June 10 saw 30-year yields slip 2 bps to 2.96 percent, below 3 percent for the third straight week.

There’s a lot of noise about the Federal Reserve. Even though it doesn’t set mortgage rates, its actions and statements sometimes do. The size of the Fed's reverse repurchase operation hit its fourth consecutive new record with the total take-up reaching $535 billion.

Today’s economic calendar is light on data, with just Michigan sentiment due out later this morning. The continued effects of revised inflation expectations after yesterday are more likely to have market moving potential. Today’s Fed purchase schedule sees the last two operations on the current schedule, totaling up to $4.6 billion of conventionals. In the afternoon, the NY Fed Desk will release a new purchase schedule along with the mid-June to mid-July purchase estimate, expected to total a pandemic low based on paydowns in the Fed portfolio in addition to the monthly SOMA increase. We begin the last day of the official workweek with Agency MBS prices roughly unchanged from Thursday evening and the 10-year yielding 1.45 after closing yesterday at 1.46 percent.

Employment

An established retail lender in the Southeast Great Lakes region is on the search for Wholesale Account Executives! “Our AEs have numerous opportunities to grow their own territories, help be instrumental in implementing changes, have access to a full FNMA, FHLMC, & GNMA agency product set, manual underwrites and more! This position offers a unique and pivotal role in helping grow the channel and will require previous Wholesale AE experience. Company has won Top Places to work year after year consistently and is heavily connected in the mortgage industry. This is an excellent opportunity for growth!” If interested, please send your resume to Chrisman LLC’s Anjelica Nixt for forwarding and specify this opportunity.

“Ray Brousseau and Polaris Home Loans, LLC have the opportunity you have been waiting for! Run one of our direct-to-consumer retail centers and benefit from 3 income streams (base salary, personal production comp and strong override on the team). Supported with top notch technology and an operations Team that “gets it”. Come help us build something special where you will thrive and have the chance to shape the direction of the firm! Must be a well-established leader that can quickly assemble a qualified Team. Interested parties should email Ray Brousseau.”

Towne Mortgage Company is a multi-channel, national mortgage lender with the strength and stability of nearly 40 years in business. Account Executives have numerous opportunities to expand and excel. You will sell cross-channel (Wholesale, Non-Del, and Full Delegated) and have access to full Agency and Renovation product sets. Furthermore, Towne offers single AE territories in large markets on top of an extremely competitive compensation and benefits package. Currently, Towne has wide-open markets: WA/OR, CO, VA/MD/DC, OH/IN, TX, FL, TN/AL/KY, LA/MS/AR, NC/SC/GA and New England Region. Our reviews repeatedly show we meet client expectations. A recent review said "I felt the process from submission to closing was very smooth. Everyone on the team communicated great and responses to questions were addressed quickly." Let Towne’s experience in this space help you generate more business from your clients. Get started with a company that’s one-of-a-kind! Explore Towne Careers at careers.townemortgage.com.

“Newrez is in the business of helping you make Smart Moves to advance in your career. Our team is actively seeking a Product Specialist – Non-QM out of Fort Washington, PA, Columbia, MD, Jacksonville, FL, Tempe, AZ, or Charlotte, NC. Primary function: Assist internal and external customers with interpretation of Newrez and investor guidelines, market surveillance, and analytics. Ideal candidate will have 5+ years of relevant knowledge and expertise in non-agency products, communications, conducting training, competitive surveillance, and mortgage product research/evaluations. This is a customer focused position that requires clear, concise communication and research skills to effectively meet channel-specific needs. Ready to make a Smart Move? Click to apply today or contact our recruiting team. Product Specialist – Non-QM |  recruitingteam@newrez.com.”

A wholesaler that is approved in over 45 states, and founded over 20 years ago, is searching for AEs and sales teams nationwide. This company is well-capitalized with Fannie and Freddie approvals, and is a GNMA approved seller/servicer. The company’s average monthly funding per AE has consistently been over $8mm (thought to be an industry record). The company has tremendous growth capability, and is looking for sales teams to cover a vast, untouched territories throughout the nation as well as AEs who want the tools to increase their production. If you are interested in working for an organization that understands success is more than focusing on just top producers, then this is the place for you. Additionally, this company offers amazing growth opportunity, unprecedented level of concierge service, aggressive compensation plan and competitive pricing (consistently ranked 5 to 10 on Loansifter). Contact Chrisman LLC’s Anjelica Nixt with a resume for forwarding if you are interested.

“AmWest Funding Corp, the #1 originator in Non-QM loans, has continued its commitment by raising an extra $100 million to continue innovating, growing, and becoming the premier lender in Non-QM/Non-Agency loans as well as in QM loans as Fannie/Freddie and GNMA seller/servicer. If you are looking for an experienced lender that will help you expand your territory and diversify your product offerings with excellent service and turn times, join us today! Please send your resume to Nick Choi or visit our website for more career opportunities.”