Is title insurance ripe for disruption?

"Cloud on title" is an industry term that describes situations in which the ownership of a home is unclear. One could say there's a cloud on title insurance generally today, given the Biden Administration's proposed title waiver pilot, the questions it raises and the broad spectrum of responses to it. Nothing about title insurance these days is black and white — it's more many shades of cloudy gray. While the pilot only covers one tiny portion of loans, it has reopened a debate that has gone on for years: whether title insurance as currently constructed is useful. While both the Mortgage Bankers Association and the American Land Title Association are vocal opponents of the Biden proposal, Doma, a title underwriter (which is in the process of selling itself to another firm primarily because of financial issues) and the Community Home Lenders of America, are supportive of the White House program.

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Lenders, TPOs barred from HECM-for-Purchase contributions

The Federal Housing Administration has cut lenders, third-party originators and any "premium pricing" from the newly expanded list of allowable interested-party contributions for Home Equity Conversion Mortgages used to buy homes. Some other aspects of the proposed rule, which allows homebuyers to use additional funding sources to qualify for a HECM, were left unchanged. Consumer advocates welcomed the new restrictions as a means of ensuring lower financing costs for borrowers ages 62 and up who are eligible for the loans.

20 producers with the largest jumbo loan volume

In this ranking of producers with the largest jumbo loan volume, the top five had an average dollar volume of more than $99 million for 2023. These five producers also averaged 89 jumbo loans originated for the year.? This ranking was derived from an analysis of self-submitted loan volumes from those who had applied to be part of the National Mortgage News Top Producers rankings. Read on to find out which producers are in the top 20 and how they previously fared in 2023.

FHFA finalizes rule on fair lending, language preference

The Fair Lending, Fair Housing, and Equitable Housing Finance Plans Final Rule originally proposed last year aims to make it tougher to roll back measures intended to encourage more equitable access to homeownership through Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, the influential quasi-public mortgage investors the FHFA oversees, and the Federal Home Loan Banks. Regular planning aimed at closing the racial homeownership gap and language preference form requirements are particularly important to preserve now given cost pressures in the market that could hurt some communities disproportionately, FHFA Director Sandra Thompson said.

Rocket, UWM CEOs got hefty paychecks in 2023

UWM's CEO Mat Ishbia saw his yearly income double, with the executive taking home over $12 million, a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission April 25 shows. Ishbia made a little under $7 million in total compensation in 2022. Adding to Ishbia's ballooning overall compensation last year was over $1 million in stock awards. Meanwhile, Varun Krishna, who was tapped to lead both Rocket Companies and Rocket Mortgage in September, received $3.4 million during his first four months with the mortgage lender, according to a filing with the SEC on April 26.?

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