Fri, Oct 9 2026, 11:50 AM
As Robbie and I prepare to head to Chicago this weekend for the “MBA National,” yesterday I was speaking with someone at the bar at Legs Inn in Northe...
Thu, Oct 8 2026, 11:42 AM
“My friend is an EMT, and she's amazing on trivia night. She's usually the first responder.” The United States is full of trivia. Did you know that pa...
Wed, Oct 7 2026, 11:51 AM
Lender and Broker Products, Services, and Software “Chicagoans have one unbreakable rule: no ketchup on a hot dog. Mortgage lenders should have one ...
Tue, Oct 6 2026, 11:24 AM
I like to say that I am one good Lottery Scratcher away from ditching this daily Commentary gig and starting something new. All kidding aside, where s...
Mon, Oct 5 2026, 11:25 AM
Today brings us the MBA of the Carolinas conference, where demographics, technology, and “building a team” are on the agenda. Here at the Michigan Mor...
Fri, Oct 2 2026, 11:29 AM
“A clear conscience is usually the sign of a bad memory.” How’s your memory of rates, and what you did when they moved higher? 30-year mortgage rates ...
Thu, Oct 1 2026, 11:18 AM
Welcome to the 4th quarter. Remember when, in 2024, the informal slogan for many in our biz was, “Stay alive ‘til ’25!”? (’27 isn’t expected to be hea...
Wed, Sep 30 2026, 11:53 AM
Time flies. The last day of the third quarter. We just wrapped up Fat Bear Week 2026 in Alaska. (Congrats to Backpack.) Ringo Starr is 86 years old, a...
Tue, Sep 29 2026, 11:13 AM
Lender and Brokers Products, Services, and Software Regulatory oversight for automated valuation models (AVMs) has shifted in recent years, placing ...
Mon, Sep 28 2026, 11:23 AM
We’re waist deep in conferences (click here to view or add events), and every week I receive a half a dozen invitations to mortgage golf events center...
Fri, Sep 25 2026, 11:55 AM
“Hey, it’s either network or no work.” For lenders, networking is an important part of their business. In addition, generally speaking, renters are pr...
Thu, Sep 24 2026, 11:40 AM
When in doubt, hold a conference. It is an aging group of attendees… exhibitors’ displays and giveaways tell the tale. Frisbees have been replaced wit...
Wed, Sep 23 2026, 12:04 PM
“I won the lottery for a million dollars yesterday, so I decided to donate a quarter of it to charity. I now have $999,999.75.” One can make jokes abo...
Tue, Sep 22 2026, 11:41 AM
Here at the ACUMA event in Las Vegas, credit unions are definitely on the march for market share in a decreasing residential volume environment, given...
Mon, Sep 21 2026, 12:23 PM
Broker and Lender Products, Software, and Services Ever gone to pick up a prescription only to be told it needs prior authorization? The request lea...
Fri, Sep 18 2026, 10:59 AM
A big thrust by many lenders and originators is helping homeowners use the equity in their home or offering a shared equity product. And why not: ther...
Thu, Sep 17 2026, 11:22 AM
“My wife says I only have 2 faults. I don't listen, and something else…” Communication matters. How many LOs wear a pin out in public that says, “Busi...
Wed, Sep 16 2026, 11:49 AM
A while back I was watching the news on TV, and they were interviewing a couple whose home was threatened by a tornado, but who didn’t leave. “God wil...
Tue, Sep 15 2026, 11:18 AM
Today we’re in Dallas for the Loan Vision Innovation Conference 2026, and LV recently rolled out its AI accounting software Luna. The CEOs, CFOs, and ...
Mon, Sep 14 2026, 11:11 AM
Yes, the college game was amazing Saturday night here in Austin, but there’s also IMN’s HELOCs & Second Liens event. The markets know that it is a hot...
Fri, Sep 11 2026, 11:05 AM
Most of us 30 years old and older have tales about where they were and what they did 25 years ago. Being in capital markets, and selling MBS, for over...
Thu, Sep 10 2026, 11:43 AM
Here in San Antonio, TX, interest rates are obviously part of mortgage event discussion. (On today’s The Big Picture Guild’s David Battany will be dis...
Wed, Sep 9 2026, 11:05 AM
What should we talk about today? Besides TSA bringing back gate access, here’s a leading IMB exec and his wife putting their Florida home on the marke...
Tue, Sep 8 2026, 11:03 AM
Many years ago, it seemed like people bragged about how late they stayed up at conferences. Now they brag about how early they went sleep. Today I hea...
Fri, Sep 4 2026, 11:47 AM
Make sure that your air conditioning is in good condition, as well as clients’. Loan servicers are wondering about their collateral: “Heat in the ocea...
Thu, Sep 3 2026, 11:04 AM
Broker and Lender Products, Software, and Services As AI becomes embedded across the mortgage lifecycle, lenders are rethinking how they use data to...
Wed, Sep 2 2026, 11:25 AM
I’ve been in capital markets for over 40 years, and this rate and affordability environment is tough. Any lender who finds these higher rates boring, ...
Tue, Sep 1 2026, 11:50 AM
I don’t know where August went, but it went somewhere. We’re now two thirds of the way through the 3rd quarter of 2026. Lenders and vendors are adapti...
Mon, Aug 31 2026, 10:34 AM
Grammar is important. Let’s not forget the comma… the difference between “I want you to eat, my friend” and “I want you to eat my friend.” Let’s not f...
Fri, Aug 28 2026, 11:45 AM
STRATMOR’s 2026 Technology Insight® Study Lender Intelligence Survey is now open, giving mortgage lenders a chance to share their firsthand experience...
Thu, Aug 27 2026, 11:45 AM
Thank you to the folks who wrote to me about their concerns with the Reno fire, knowing my ties there (my place is safe). On a broader scale, as of Au...
Wed, Aug 26 2026, 11:45 AM
Hackers intercepted about 103 bank regulators’ e-mails for more than a year, gaining access to highly sensitive financial information, according to tw...
Tue, Aug 25 2026, 11:52 AM
Zillow and Redfin settled their FTC antitrust case, as we figured they would, and certainly technology was involved. With the increase in artificial i...
Mon, Aug 24 2026, 11:47 AM
“People make their wealth out of one investment. People keep their wealth by diversifying their investments.” Owning mortgage servicing rights has cre...
Fri, Aug 21 2026, 11:52 AM
LOs tell me that they are counseling potential borrowers. “If you’re in the market for a home, focus on the things you can control. Save for your down...
Thu, Aug 20 2026, 11:43 AM
Lender and Broker Software, Products, and Services Automating individual tasks isn't the same as transforming mortgage operations. Real efficiency c...
Wed, Aug 19 2026, 11:43 AM
Everyone is racing to bolt AI onto their lending process. QAwerk's Konstantin Klyagin says most of them are skipping the boring part that actually mat...
Tue, Aug 18 2026, 11:52 AM
While Lake Powell and the Colorado River are at their lowest levels ever, and states like Minnesota, Oregon, and Washington are in a drought, would yo...
Mon, Aug 17 2026, 11:41 AM
Some aren’t a fan of new federal escrow laws. Ten states have sued the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency over new federal rules that would pre...
Fri, Aug 14 2026, 11:43 AM
If you think that profit per loan, or gain per unit, is based purely on size, think about this short video. “Profit” can also be a personal measure in...
Thu, Aug 13 2026, 11:45 AM
Innovation, compliance, and affordability were key themes at this week’s Western Secondary. At the state level, for example, Kinder Institute report s...
Wed, Aug 12 2026, 11:15 AM
One of the panels during this year’s California MBA Western Secondary focused on the ramp up of non-Agency/equity lending. Why has it increased as a p...
Tue, Aug 11 2026, 11:45 AM
What are folks talking about here at the Western Secondary? Small things and big things. There’s a brand-spankin’ new private MI company: Anza. (Conta...
Mon, Aug 10 2026, 11:42 AM
Here in the hallways at the Western Secondary in L.A., there isn’t a lot of talk about GSE reform, although this short clip from Sam Valverde, ex-acti...
Fri, Aug 7 2026, 11:52 AM
As many of us prepare to head to So Cal for the California MBA’s Western Secondary (800 or so registered), artificial intelligence continues to be the...
Thu, Aug 6 2026, 10:53 AM
Lender and Broker Software, Products, and Services What if the most important capital markets decision you're making today is based on incomplete da...
Tue, Aug 4 2026, 11:44 AM
After a general summer lull, and with talk of JPMorgan Chase’s $750 billion housing investment rifling through our biz, mortgage conference season shi...
Mon, Aug 3 2026, 11:24 AM
Non-QM investors are “licking their chops” by using the information that the FHFA, through Freddie and Fannie, is requiring a more thorough lender ass...
Fri, Jul 31 2026, 11:49 AM
I am no numerologist, but Freddie Mac’s announcement yesterday, that 30-year mortgage rates are averaging 6.66, caught my attention. Unlike rumors, li...
Thu, Jul 30 2026, 11:56 AM
I was recently doing some bike riding in the Napa Valley and spent some time speaking with a wine maker. She told me that because of the increase in t...
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