Mr. Cooper's cybersecurity incident may impact its creditworthiness

It has been over a week since Mr. Cooper experienced a cybersecurity incident impacting its servicing systems. Some of its infrastructure continues to be shut down as of Wednesday, though the company is making strides to restore its systems. The mortgage lender, as of Nov. 6, announced it is now able to take payments from borrowers and "provide limited information" regarding a loan on its website, though the information available reflects a consumer's loan status as of Oct. 31. The magnitude of the attack and how long Mr. Cooper's systems will be locked down might impact the lender's credit quality, according to Moody's Investors Service.

READ MORE: Mr. Cooper's cybersecurity incident may impact its creditworthiness

Mortgage application volumes up for first time in 4 weeks

Loan-application volumes saw their first rise in four weeks, as new economic data put a halt to recent steep interest rate surges, the Mortgage Bankers Association said. The MBA's Market Composite Index increased a seasonally adjusted 2.5% for the seven-day period ending Nov 3. Compared to the same survey week in 2022, though, the index sat 17% lower. Borrowers returned as investors and the Federal Reserve offered some rate relief. Despite stronger-than-expected growth of U.S gross domestic product in the third quarter, the central bank opted not to hike the federal funds rate in its fight against inflation.?

UWM misses on volume, but beats gain-on-sale forecast

UWM Holdings missed estimates on total volume for the third quarter, but it did outperform on gain-on-sale margins, a Keefe, Bruyette & Woods flash note said. For the fourth quarter, the guidance of production to be between $19 billion to $26 billion range was below the pre-earnings consensus of $30.1 billion and at the upper end of KBW's $25.9 billion. UWM also guided to a margin of between 75 basis points to 100 basis points for the current period, similar to what it had said for the third quarter. BTIG in a separate report argued that UWM has an opportunity for margin expansion as mortgage rates drop on a sustained level,

Finance of America reduces loss, leans into second-liens

Top reverse-mortgage lender Finance of America reported an unaudited quarterly reduction in its net loss during its earnings call Tuesday, initially giving a slight lift to its shares, which have been trading in penny stock territory. The company recorded a net loss of $175 million in the third quarter, $172 million of which was from continuing operations. It took losses of $222 million in the second quarter, and $302 million in the third fiscal period of last year when it shut down its traditional mortgage unit to reposition. As the leading player in a specialized niche within the consolidating mortgage market, Finance of America's ability to reduce its losses and return to profitability are being watched closely.

Loandepot predicts profitability by spring given Q3's results

Loandepot closed the summer with another quarterly loss but enjoyed higher margins from home equity lending and better repurchase performance. The leading lender and servicer endured a seventh consecutive quarter in the red, with a $34.3 million net loss in the third quarter. The result however was a 31% improvement from the prior period as the industry giant continued to shave costs as part of its major Vision 2025 restructuring. Company leaders in an earnings call Tuesday projected profitability in the second and third quarters next year, and attributed slightly higher gain-on-sale margins to a few factors, including increased profit margins on its year old home equity line of credit product.

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