Tue, Apr 19 2022, 10:18 AM
As the nation ruminates on the court ruling on the mandatory mask mandate, remember, “You do not need a parachute to skydive. You only need a parachut...
Mon, Apr 18 2022, 10:58 AM
Notes to start off the week?! First off, there are some darned clever people around, and this ditty (thank you to John H. for sending) sung to “Americ...
Thu, Apr 14 2022, 10:34 AM
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 fig...
Wed, Apr 13 2022, 11:33 AM
I happen to be visiting Manhattan this week. Besides the news about the subway shooting, the overall “hum” of this place being unmistakable and I ment...
Tue, Apr 12 2022, 11:44 AM
I knew it was going to be a rough morning today when my alarm went off and I found my cat Myrtle staring at the computer screen watching Social D’s “D...
Fri, Apr 8 2022, 11:27 AM
The risk-free 2-year Treasury began 2022 yielding .73 and is now at 2.52 percent! Does your company offer 2-1 buydown loans? Do your LOs even know wha...
Thu, Apr 7 2022, 10:12 AM
Today is National Beer Day (beer humor below), which made last night Beer Day’s Eve. Here at the CMLA event the talk is not about all of the craft bre...
Wed, Apr 6 2022, 12:17 PM
Grammar is important. What’s the difference between a kleptomaniac and a literalist? A literalist takes things literally. A kleptomaniac takes things,...
Tue, Apr 5 2022, 11:05 AM
My friend David had his id stolen and now he’s just Dav. Having anything stolen is not a laughing matter, and since we’re in the money business, lende...
Mon, Apr 4 2022, 12:23 PM
“Rob, my capital markets gal eliminated our ability to lock overnight at yesterday’s rates. I think that she’s being unreasonable. Your thoughts?” No,...
Fri, Apr 1 2022, 11:08 AM
I think that we can all agree that in 2017 not a single interviewee got the answer correct to, “Where do you see yourself 5 years from now?” Heck, pro...
Wed, Mar 30 2022, 10:59 AM
As we edge toward Easter, which isn’t until April 17 this year, the Dallas Fed has released a report on housing prices… have they become unhinged from...
Tue, Mar 29 2022, 11:54 AM
When did “beauty parlors” become “beauty shops” become “salons” and “spas?” Our industry doesn’t have a monopoly on change, and in my recent travels a...
Mon, Mar 28 2022, 8:47 AM
This isn’t a commentary. It’s a “next level experience!” How are we in the week ending the first quarter already? Here’s some news that will be greete...
Fri, Mar 25 2022, 11:08 AM
“A fine is a tax for doing wrong. A tax is a fine for doing well.” Lenders sometimes grapple with the former, always deal with the latter. In my trave...
Thu, Mar 24 2022, 9:57 AM
The state of most commodity prices around the world? Prices are higher. What is the current state of donating blood? I tried donating blood again yest...
Wed, Mar 23 2022, 9:48 AM
Another day of travel, heading to California and its Central Coast. The state has seen its share of house price appreciation, as has the nation, and i...
Tue, Mar 22 2022, 10:37 AM
As packages of mortgage servicing rights continue to hit the market, and some wonder at the high multiples, know that the percentage of borrowers curr...
Mon, Mar 21 2022, 11:43 AM
Today, for yield curve fans, the 3, 5, and 7-year Treasury yields are all above the 10-year yield. But yesterday was the Spring Equinox, aka Vernal Eq...
Fri, Mar 18 2022, 10:50 AM
When did pineapples in shopping carts become a thing (more below)? But I digress… This morning I head to Miami, because isn’t there where most rap vid...
Thu, Mar 17 2022, 10:10 AM
Walking around Memphis yesterday got me to thinking, “I wonder what the part of my brain that used to store people’s phone numbers is doing now.” Mayb...
Wed, Mar 16 2022, 9:59 AM
Let’s face it, women spend more time worrying about what men are actually thinking than men actually spend thinking. While capital markets staffs are ...
Tue, Mar 15 2022, 11:33 AM
At the Ides of March, inflation is pervasive. Today rumors are swirling that Tom Brady ended his retirement because of not being able to afford to ret...
Mon, Mar 14 2022, 11:51 AM
Today’s commentary: 100 percent the truth except for the stuff I make up randomly. I am not making up the Federal Reserve’s meeting this week with tra...
Fri, Mar 11 2022, 10:08 AM
Daylight Saving Time for much of the nation springs up Sunday morning, leading to plenty of grousing on Monday. What else is going on? “Please listen ...
Thu, Mar 10 2022, 10:20 AM
“I don’t always go the extra mile, but when I do, it’s because I missed my exit.” And that extra mile costs more every week. Higher gasoline prices ce...
Wed, Mar 9 2022, 9:43 AM
I’m visiting with lenders in Tennessee much of this week, and a fair amount of the talk revolves around conversations with borrowers “unlocking the eq...
Tue, Mar 8 2022, 10:40 AM
This morning I am heading to Knoxville to visit with the local chapter of the Tennessee Mortgage Bankers Association. On my way I received an email as...
Mon, Mar 7 2022, 11:52 AM
What is $9,140? It was the production cost, per IMB loan for the 3rd quarter in 2021. (The Q4 2021 results are coming out on March 22.) I bring this u...
Fri, Mar 4 2022, 10:28 AM
Yes, it’s March 4th… the only day that is a command for us humans. We thought it was our ability to love that made us human, but it turns out that it ...
Thu, Mar 3 2022, 10:21 AM
I flew into San Diego yesterday for the MCT Exchange, and it is hard not to notice the number of boats in the harbor. For some quick “fun with numbers...
Wed, Mar 2 2022, 10:03 AM
Loan originators spend their time making people’s days (unlike this film clip). Builders hope that they make people’s days, and I spent some time this...
Tue, Mar 1 2022, 11:29 AM
"Sergeant, can we go for breakfast now?" "March first!" Welcome to March, with Mardi Gras beginning today, Daylight Savings Time on the 13th, Pi Day o...
Mon, Feb 28 2022, 11:08 AM
I could tell that my cat Myrtle was miffed, and this time it didn’t have anything to do with the CFPB. (Nor me heading to Salt Lake City today for the...
Fri, Feb 25 2022, 11:54 AM
Remember how you wished that the pandemic wouldn’t be in the headlines every day? You got it! Unfortunately, it has been replaced by the Russian invas...
Thu, Feb 24 2022, 11:13 AM
Greetings from Little Rock, Arkansas (home of cheese dip, 1935)! George Thorogood’s music is alive and well here, and a happy 72nd birthday to he who ...
Wed, Feb 23 2022, 9:47 AM
Lending is full of statistics. And originators follow many of them, looking for an edge in finding clients. Last year 27.1 million Americans moved, 80...
Tue, Feb 22 2022, 9:59 AM
While the bond market is watching the world define a Ukrainian “invasion,” do you know why you should respect people who wear glasses? They paid good ...
Mon, Feb 21 2022, 7:42 AM
The mortgage talk here in Cleveland is how, “Tough times never last but tough people do.” Many estimates have residential production hitting $4.8 tril...
Fri, Feb 18 2022, 11:18 AM
Greetings from wintry Chicago where mortgage rates, as they are across the nation, are back to May 2019 levels. Did you know that the name "Chicago" c...
Thu, Feb 17 2022, 12:19 PM
I received this from a loan officer in Michigan. “Forget the Serenity Prayer! Grant me coffee to change the things I can, and wine to accept those tha...
Wed, Feb 16 2022, 8:48 AM
Things change and time passes. A little more than three months ago we “fell back” and now we have less than a month until most states in the U.S. chan...
Tue, Feb 15 2022, 9:26 AM
Sure, Fannie had $5.2 billion of net income in the fourth quarter of 2021, but money can’t buy you love. Love is more of a chemical reaction than a st...
Mon, Feb 14 2022, 12:14 PM
Sometimes, someone unexpected comes into your life outta nowhere, makes your heart race, and changes you forever. We call those people cops. (Where di...
Fri, Feb 11 2022, 11:00 AM
If you see someone buying candy, popcorn, and soda at the movies, they must be a drug dealer... There's no other explanation for that type of income! ...
Thu, Feb 10 2022, 12:07 PM
Everyone has a story about something they said or asked that they shouldn’t have. “When are you due?” is a good one, as is asking, “When did you turn ...
Wed, Feb 9 2022, 9:27 AM
Today is “National Pizza Day,” a made-up day that wasn’t around when Jimmy Carter was sworn in as president 45 years ago. Back then the yield on the r...
Tue, Feb 8 2022, 8:47 AM
America's national debt topped $30 trillion for the first time, according to figures from the Treasury Department on Tuesday. Why might it matter for ...
Mon, Feb 7 2022, 11:18 AM
While brokers have taken note of UWM suing America’s MoneyLine for sending loans to Rocket and Fairway (remember UWM’s policy plainly stated last Marc...
Fri, Feb 4 2022, 1:46 PM
Goals are good. Anyone whose goals included bringing back serving alcohol on Southwest flights is happy. It is fine for the Biden Administration to hi...
