Conference Calendar

Conference Calendar

March 14 - 18
27th Annual Regional Conference of Mortgage Bankers Associations
Trump Taj Mahal
Atlantic City, NJ
Commercial Property: March 14-16, Residential: March 16-18
More info

March 21 - 23
14th Annual National Collections & Credit Risk Conference
SourceMedia Conferences
InterContinental Miami
Miami, FL
More info

Survey

Has your company spent more than $5,000 on technology in the past 90 days?



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Featured Buyer's Guide Category:

Technology Consultants

Do you need technology assistance? Call these firms.
Click here to see listings in the Technology Consultants category.

For online listing info for the Buyer's Guide, Call Steve at 866-752-7966 or send an email to steven.gallego@sourcemedia.com

Loan Programs

FHA Plans to Put a Cap on Origination Fees

By Brian Collins

Brian Collins

WASHINGTON-The Federal Housing Administration soon will officially cut its ties with mortgage brokers as it moves to a system where table funders are responsible for all third-party loans.

For originators, the change will mean more paperwork and oversight responsibilities which carry certain headaches. But now mortgage bankers - and brokers - are facing a new concern: the possibility that FHA will cap origination fees on the loans it guarantees.

HUD deputy assistant secretary Vicki Bott told a broker gathering in Washington that the agency is indeed considering a cap. In particular, HUD is looking at using the newly implemented good-faith estimate disclosure as a way to corral origination fees. (All origination fees, including yield-spread premiums, are in Block No. 1 of the GFE.)

Read more...

Making the Sale

Save Money: Reexamine Your Office Rent

By Brad Finkelstein

There have been plenty of stories in the media about the cash flow crunch facing many small businesses today. Many business owners have been making cutbacks looking to get by.

But according to one online community for small business owners, there is one place that needs to be examined in the effort to save money. That is the commercial real estate lease (or leases) for your office(s). In my view, this is something where your skills and knowledge as a mortgage broker should give you an edge.

Executives at PartnerUp cite National Association of Realtor reports noting commercial real estate vacancy rates expected to be above 20% this year. Furthermore, the company points out, rents are down 44% since the peak of the market, making it a good time now to renegotiate or renew your lease.

Read more...

What We're Hearing Daily

By Paul Muolo

The Federal Housing Administration wants to raise the minimum net worth requirement for its lenders to $2.5 million within three years, an idea that doesn't warm the hearts of small correspondent lenders. However, we're told that at least one large wholesale/correspondent lender thinks the minimum should be hiked to $3 million (for the first year) and $4.5 million by 2012. If this happens a correspondent that is light on capital would be forced to find another source of funding, merge, or close their doors...

See Paul's weekly column here.

Top Producer Survey

Loan officers, originators, brokers: fill out our 3-minute survey and get ranked in the Origination News list of top producers. As a bonus, you'll also get a free subscription to Origination News.

Click here for the survey

News Headlines

Index Finds Home Prices Drop with Less Micro Variation

Data from Integrated Asset Services LLC, Denver, Colo., show that national home prices fell 2.3% in January, when there was somewhat less variation than usual at micro-market levels.

Click here for more.

ICP to Transfer Businesses to PrinceRidge

ICP Capital has agreed to transfer its domestic and international capital markets businesses to PrinceRidge Holdings LP to create an international investment-banking boutique serving investors and issuers in the institutional fixed income markets.

Click here for more.

Developers Closed on Most South Beach Condos Built Since '03

Condominium developers in South Florida's famed South Beach area have closed on some 4,150 new units since 2003, for an average price of $891,000 per unit. But that still leaves about 1,450 apartments that remain unsold, according to a report published by Condo Vultures, a Bal Harbour-based real estate consulting firm.

Click here for more.

Purchases Drive Mortgage Bankers' Application Increase

Purchase mortgage application volume had a strong week and was the driver of the increase in the Mortgage Bankers Association's Market Composite Index for the week of Feb. 26.

Click here for more.

Appraisers Warn About BPOs and Property 'Flopping'

Appraisers are raising alarms that the Treasury Department's decision to use broker price opinions (BPOs) for its new short sales program will exacerbate mortgage fraud and property "flopping."

Click here for more.

Survey Results

Last week's question was "Has your company had a net increase in the number of employees in the past 90 days?" We had a big jump in positive responses when compared to last quarter, with five times as many people saying yes they now have more employees than last time: 25%, compared to 5% three months ago. While this is still far from a majority it is perhaps an encouraging sign. Tune in again in three months time to see if these employment numbers continue to rally.

This week's question is "Has your company spent more than $5,000 on technology in the past 90 days?" As always, we'd love to hear what you think. Be sure to give us your input by clicking on the survey form on the left-hand side.

Has your company had a net increase in the number of employees in the past 90 days?
This Week 13 Weeks Ago 26 Weeks Ago 39 Weeks Ago 52 Weeks Ago
Yes No Yes No Yes No Yes No Yes No
4 12 1 19 4 21 11 14 11 37
25% 75% 5% 95% 16% 84% 44% 56% 22% 77%

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