How AI can make lending objective, according to a tech leader
National Mortgage News
In-depth analysis, strategy and data spanning the entire residential mortgage industry. An Arizent brand.
In grade school, Sara Knochel already showed signs of turning into a future computer scientist thanks to a developing interest in math and languages. In the years since, Knochel has applied those skills in an effort to help deliver solutions to some of the thorniest problems the mortgage industry is confronting today. Her computer science degree led to an initial job at Loanperformance, which was later acquired by Corelogic, and eventually to her current leadership role at Candor Technology . Today, she serves as both chief operating officer and chief of staff. Knochel spoke with National Mortgage News recently to discuss how the wealth of data the industry has today can be used to help mortgage lenders make accurate and bias-free decisions, while also addressing concerns the industry might have with trust in technology.
United Wholesale Mortgage was a market leader twice over in 2023, according to initial vendor analyses of new Home Mortgage Disclosure Act data the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau released this week. While the read on modified Loan Application Register data can differ slightly based on the methodologies used by different companies, all of the 2023 reports this publication had reviewed at deadline put UWM at the top of the list in two categories. UWM led the field in loan units during 2023, unseating Rocket Mortgage in that category as overall origination numbers shrank, according to reports from Asurity, Polygon Research and Recursion.?
The average monthly mortgage payment for a home purchase rose in recent weeks, even as the tight housing market shows signs of loosening. Payments increased 10% year-over-year to an all-time high of $2,721 for the four weeks ended March 24, Redfin said on Thursday morning. The Mortgage Bankers Association also released its February Purchase Applications Payment Index the same day, and found the median disbursement increased by $50 from January, to $2,184. That figure is a $123 increase from February 2023. The PAPI value increased 2.4% to 170.7 in February from 166.8 in January. For the same month last year, the index was 1.1% lower, with the year-over-year change attributed to a 4.8% rise in median income besides the 6% rise in payments.
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Mortgage rates moved down a bit this week, in line with the benchmark 10-year Treasury, as the markets continue to digest comments from Federal Reserve members. The 30-year fixed loan averaged 6.79% as of Thursday morning, down 8 basis points from the previous week's 6.87%, according to the Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey. For the same period last year, the average was 6.32%. Meanwhile the 15-year FRM averaged 6.11%, down from last week when it averaged 6.21% and up from a year ago's average of 5.56%.
Digital lender Better Home & Finance posted a $59 million net loss in the fourth quarter in its second earnings report since going public last summer, it announced Thursday. That was an 83% improvement from the $340 million net loss over the third quarter, which was exacerbated by a financial repercussion from its merger to go public. Better executives are bullish on future performance after shifting loan officer pay last year to commission-based compensation plans, moving on from no-commission, fixed-compensation for LOs stemming from the low-rate environment of years past.?
California housing officials announced this week its pandemic-related Homeowner Assistance Fund was entering its final stage and encouraged homeowners to apply before the money runs out. The pending end to the pandemic-relief program marks the completion of a more than two-year effort to keep families from losing their homes as well as preserve their future opportunities to build wealth, state officials said. Applications will be accepted and processed as long as funds remain available, the state said.?
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