Home appraisers are fed up with how their industry is run

The field is too difficult to get into, too easy to get booted out of and too bogged down with bureaucracy, appraisers around the country say. The ranks of appraisers are too old, too white and too male. And for banks and other lenders, especially those in rural communities, there aren't enough appraisers to keep up with demand. A deluge of research data and press-reported anecdotes about Black and Hispanic homeowners routinely having their homes assessed below market value has put real estate appraisal in the Biden administration's crosshairs as it looks to root out institutional contributors to racial inequality. The problems are numerous. Many in the field point fingers at The Appraisal Foundation, a nonprofit industry group with congressional authority to write the rules on appraisal licensure and best practices. Yet, by all accounts, it is acting in accordance with the law.?

READ MORE: Home appraisers are fed up with how their industry is run

Tech, data, regulation — find your competitive edge: Join us at DigMo next week

Mortgage rates hit their highest point since 2008

The 30-year fixed-rate average leaped another 23 basis points to 5.89% for the weekly period ending Sept. 8, according to Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey. Over the same seven-day period last year, the 30-year average came in more than 3% lower at 2.88%.? At the same time, the 15-year average also jumped 18 basis points to 5.16% from 4.98% week over week, crossing the 5% mark for the first time since 2009. Rising in tandem, the 5-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgage increased 13 basis points to 4.64%. Both 30- and 15-year rates are now sitting at heights not seen since late 2008, while the 5-year hybrid ARM surpassed a 2009 high-water mark.

Fed report shows weak U.S. growth outlook with inflation cooling

"The outlook for future economic growth remained generally weak, with contacts noting expectations for further softening of demand over the next six to twelve months," the Federal Reserve said Wednesday in its Beige Book report. Price levels "remained highly elevated," but nine districts reported some degree of moderation in their rate of increase. The price of food, rent, utilities and hospitality services rose substantially across all 12 Fed districts. Labor markets remained tight and labor shortages weighed on several sectors. Lower overall demand and a reduction in fuel prices helped alleviate price pressures, the Fed said. Chair Jerome Powell has pledged to raise interest rates and keep them there "for some time" to curb price increases.

Nominate your firm to be considered for 2023 ranking of the Best Mortgage Companies to Work for

Realtor.com announces layoffs as industry cuts deepen

The listing giant this week cut an undisclosed number of regular and contracted employees across most of its departments, it revealed Thursday. Realtor.com, based in Santa Clara, California, made the move in response to slowing sales volume, according to a Wednesday email to employees from CEO David Doctorow. The business is providing impacted staffers "generous" severance and extended COBRA health benefits, he said. Over the quarter ending June 30, Realtor.com saw average monthly unique users to its web and mobile sites drop 13% compared to the same time last year, according to media conglomerate NewsCorp., which owns Realtor.com's parent company Move Inc.?

Sign up here to receive the National Mortgage News complete newsletter — delivered to your inbox daily.