Lending continues to be intertwined with legal and compliance issues. Here’s a story from overnight that is catching a lot of attention: “Equifax stock falls after saying it received a CID from the CFPB.” The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) agreed to drop its challenge to Intercontinental Exchange Inc.’s (ICE) proposed deal with Black Knight Inc. in a joint stipulation that allows them to work toward a settlement. Lender ToolKit is suing Celebrity Home Loans and MLD. and Meanwhile, lenders and vendors are doing what they can to increase business and tap into new markets, and with that in mind National MI is sponsoring a weekly podcast beginning today focused on offering mortgages to people in their 20s and 30s (Mortgages with Millennials). (Today’s podcast can be found here and is sponsored by SimpleNexus, an nCino Company, developer of mortgage technology uniting the people, systems, and stages of the mortgage process into one seamless, end-to-end solution. Listen to an interview with Bank of Oklahoma’s Chris Maloney on volatility and spreads, the money supply, and bond over/underperformance.)

Lender and Broker Software, Products, and Services

Everyday expenses are rising for millions, including many prospective homebuyers saving for a down payment. Mosi Gatling, a top producer at loanDepot, leaves no homeowner behind in the Las Vegas market as she assists mainly first-time, military and low-income buyers moving forward with mortgages supported with down payment assistance. Down Payment Resource shares her story and how her team of six does nine figure volume by working closely with Diane Arvizo of the Nevada Rural Housing Authority in Doing Well While Doing Good. We think this is a great example of one thing happening in Vegas that shouldn’t stay there. Read the full story here.

Work Hard Easier. Here's how to work less and win more in this tough market. Your first instinct may be to work even harder than you have been. But instead, you should focus your energy on the essential tasks: making one-to-one phone calls, having face-to-face meetings, and personalizing your marketing with video content. Automate tasks like prospect follow-up, loan in-process updates, Realtor, and past customer outreach, thank you cards and closing gifts, etc. Set up automated social media posts also. A truly easy SmartCRM system will do all this and more. Take a look at Usherpa's Relationship Engagement Platform, ranked number one in customer service and client loyalty in the mortgage business. Download this free Field Guide to Success and 3 Habits of Top Producers eguide to see how easy delegation can be.

In continuing to provide ways to grow happiness for our customers, TMS will become the Master Servicer for the Golden State Finance Authority’s (GSFA) Golden Opportunities “GO” a down payment assistance program. As of July 17, 2023, it is open for reservations. The Golden Opportunities DPA make mortgages more accessible for homeowners in CA by providing first mortgage financing, down payment, and closing costs assistance. The guideline eligibility under TMS will include FICO scores down to 620, DTIs up to 55% with AUS approval, and manual underwrites on VA and USDA loans. If you’re not an approved TMS lender, contact TMS. To become a participating lender of the GSFA Golden Opportunities DPA click here.

ICE Mortgage Technology’s VP of Product Strategy, Nancy Alley, was recently named one of HousingWire’s 2023 Women of Influence for her strategic execution and advancement of the Encompass® lending platform. Nancy’s profile spotlights how her unwavering customer focus has led her team to deliver the technology today’s mortgage lenders need to operate more efficiently and deliver a better borrower experience. Curious how Encompass customers are maximizing their technology investment and creating a future-proof business strategy? Click here to hear industry leaders share their key to success for staying at the forefront of innovation.

Big news! The Optimal Blue® PPE is now integrated with Encompass Partner Connect. Current clients can convert to the platform via the Encompass Partner Connect API. This new integration offers many features and benefits, including: a refreshed, modern Optimal Blue user interface; a single sign-on experience; users no longer needing to exit the loan on auto-accept transactions; the ability to view rates across all lock periods on one screen; an enhanced push queue view for secondary users; faster access to updates and new releases; and more! Complete your conversion to start taking advantage of these integration benefits today. Not using the Optimal Blue PPE yet? Learn how it can help you win more business by providing borrowers the right product at the best price for any mortgage financing scenario.

As lenders adapt to volatile mortgage rates, many are stopping to reconsider their servicing strategy. Do inconsistent mortgage origination volumes have you questioning what makes more sense: retaining servicing or selling servicing released? Seth Sprague, CMB, Richey May’s Director of Mortgage Banking Consulting Services (aka, resident servicing expert), outlines the 13 key trends and strategies in servicing including recommendations on how to make the right decisions for your business. Want more help defining the optimal strategy? You know where to find us.

TPO Programs for Brokers and Correspondents

Rising interest rates and inflation causing a dip in originations? Maximize your portfolio reach with HELOC options designed to help your customers tap into their home value to remodel kitchens, fund education, and more. LoanCare has a comprehensive understanding of the special nuances involved in servicing HELOCs such as knowing what's required to appear on monthly statements, ensuring that interest calculations are accurate, and setting up the HELOCs correctly when the loans are on-boarded. We can accommodate segmented, fully amortized, and interest only HELOCs. Contact LoanCare today!

Events and Webinars

Back in 2016, Netflix reported that the machine learning algorithms behind its personal recommendation engine were saving the company $1 billion in content spending a year. AI and intelligent automation aren’t just technologies of the future, they’re tools you can and should be using to reach borrowers with the right message at the right time. Join Partners Mortgage’s Katie Pastor Trinidad and Joe Wilson of Social Coach alongside Dave Savage of TrustEngine on Thursday, August 10 at 2 pm ET for a free webinar on how AI can help you increase borrower engagement and loan conversions. Register today.

Lenders, want to save you and your borrower time and money? Appraisal waiver programs like Fannie Mae’s Value Acceptance + Property Data allow lenders to skip a traditional appraisal, saving the time and cost associated with it. Watch a free webinar recording featuring Lyle Radke, Senior Director of Collateral Policy at Fannie Mae. Learn the benefits of this program, use cases, and find answers to common lender questions. Plus, discover how to quickly get started with the program.

Modern financial institutions rely on their technology ecosystem to support the needs of increasingly diverse customer bases. But without a connected solution, financial institutions can’t provide seamless, personalized experiences that build lifelong relationships. Total Expert is purpose-built to help you deliver the perfect mix of digital and human-led engagements as modern consumers flow between digital channels, SMS, and in-person interactions. That’s why leading lenders like Guaranteed Rate, Atlantic Bay Mortgage, and PRMG trust Total Expert as the hub that connects their technology ecosystems and helps them deliver the perfect financial journey. Join us for a fireside chat with these industry trailblazers on Wednesday, Aug. 16 when they’ll present: Strategies for defining your tech ecosystem and goals, priorities for evaluating and procuring the tech that meets your goals, methods for generating and measuring ROI from your tech investments, and a live Total Expert platform demo. Register for the webinar.

Are you wondering what today's Fed decision means for rates and the mortgage market? Register for a new webinar on August 9th at 11AM PT hosted by Agile Trading Technologies.

In this webinar, Phil Kukafka of Towne Mortgage, Ryan Ferderer of Multi-Bank Securities, and Andrew Rhodes of MCT will give an overview of MBS pooling, discuss the current market, share strategies for efficiently pooling and selling mortgage-backed securities, as well as the process for MBS pooling using Agile’s technology.

Join Optimal Blue for the next session in its Hedging 301 series on Wednesday, Aug. 9th, Noon ET, take a deeper dive into more advanced capital market strategies and how they naturally interplay with technological advances. This session will address the many ways Optimal Blue helps clients streamline daily processes to achieve success and optimal best execution – including mandatory price discovery and dissemination, saving basis points while delivering representative mix, solving for numerous execution iterations, and integrating to the MSR broker community for live, loan-level servicing valuations.

Join AGENT U on August 8th at 12:30-1:30pm EST for the next installment of their free monthly webinar. This month, the hosts are speaking with credit repair expert Janna Fox, CEO of ReScore, to learn about credit misconceptions. Learn how collection companies affect consumers’ credit scores, how to spot errors on credit reports, and gain insight into the hidden damage caused by pulling credit. Plus, learn expert methods to rapidly improve credit scores. Janna will be answering your questions during the live Q&A session. Visit www.agentulive.com for more details.

Looking for more in-depth commentary on weekly mortgage news? Register here for "Mortgage Matters: The Weekly Roundup with Robbie and Rob Chrisman" presented by Lenders One. Every Wednesday at 2:00 PM EST/11:00 AM PT starting August 9th, Robbie and Rob will dive into a range of mortgage-related topics, including market trends, interest rate fluctuations, innovative mortgage products, and industry advancements. Robbie and Rob will bring a unique mix of age perspective, expertise, and charisma to the screen, ensuring that the information is not only educational but also entertaining. Register for the first show on August 9th with Lenders One’s Justin Demola, CMB, as a featured guest discussing chatter from his hundreds of members.

“AFR Wholesale® (AFR) is teaming up with financing experts from Fannie Mae for the next session of our Why Wait Live Webinar Series! Please join us Wednesday, August 9th at 2 PM EST, where we will be highlighting what you need to know about manufactured home financing. Over this series, AFR has been discussing affordable financing solutions that together will help us provide homeownership opportunities to more families. Register Today! This is a live webinar, and a recording will not be provided.”

Friday the 11th at 3PM ET is the next edition of The Mortgage Collaborative’s Rundown with Melissa Langdale and me. We’ll will be covering current events in the mortgage market for 30 minutes starting at noon PT in “The Rundown”. Special guest co-host Skylar Olsen, Zillow’s Chief Economist.

James Brody, who was named Senior Litigation Partner in the wake of his merger with Garris Horn, LLP, will be co-hosting a webinar with The Mortgage Collaborative (“TMC”) at 10:00 AM PST, on August 17, titled: “Repurchase Defense Roundup: Proven Strategies to Help Lenders Fight Repurchase Demands and Pursue Culpable Third Parties.” Both Mr. Brody and his colleague, Ingrid Petersen, look forward to educating attendees on a number of invaluable strategies that will help them more effectively fight repurchase demands and improve their chances of being made whole whenever a lender is not able to successfully dispute a claim because of bad facts and/or needs to preserve a business relationship.

Capital Markets

Bond yields push higher to open the week following hawkish comments from Federal Reserve officials. New York Fed President Williams sees Federal Reserve policy remaining restrictive “for some time” and Fed Governor Bowman said that additional rate hikes will likely be needed. Rates have also been pushed higher following last week’s double-whammy of Fitch’s ratings downgrade and the heavy supply announcement from the U.S. Treasury. And don’t forget non-farm payrolls from Friday, which showed that despite missing the headline number and the previous month’s observations being revised lower, wage growth increased more than anticipated.

July marked the second consecutive month of job growth below 200k, signaling the labor market continues to cool. However, wages held firm, adding to arguments the Federal Reserve has gotten the upper hand on inflation without triggering a recession or major job losses. The unemployment rate declined to 3.50 percent, which is slightly above the 53-year low set back in January. The ISM manufacturing index improved but remained in contractionary territory for the ninth straight month in July. Price paid eased for the fifth time over the last seven months. Meanwhile, service data showed moderate expansion once again as consumers shift spending from goods to services. The most recent Senior Loan Officer Opinion Survey shows credit conditions for commercial and industrial loans remain tight and 40 percent expect further tightening. This could create a drag on growth as projects become delayed or abandoned due to lack of financing.

Though this week will be dominated by the Consumer Price Index report on Thursday and the Producer Price Index on Friday, as well as consumer sentiment, small business optimism, and mortgage earnings from United Wholesale, Loan Depot, and Guild, today’s economic calendar kicked off with NFIB small business optimism for July (hitting an 8-month high). We’ve also received the June trade deficit ($65.5 billion). Later today brings the beginning of Treasury’s quarterly refunding when it auctions $42 billion 3-year notes. Two Fed speakers are scheduled, Philadelphia President Harker and Richmond President Barkin. After the yield curve extended its recent steepening move yesterday, we begin the day with Agency MBS prices better by .125-.250 and the 10-year yielding 3.98 after closing yesterday at 4.08 percent, bonds rallying in part due to some slow-growth news out of China.