Top-10 mortgage lender Guaranteed Rate has filed a lawsuit against retail rival New American Funding over poaching. But this isn’t your standard poaching lawsuit: G-Rate alleges that NAF has wooed at least 30 employees since early 2023 via illegal loan officer compensation practices. Despite the rise in poaching lawsuits in a competitive market, it’s the […]
On Jan. 26, HousingWire will host a virtual debate between Michael Ketchmark, the plaintiffs’ attorney in the Sitzer/Burnett commission lawsuit, and Anthony Lamacchia, CEO of Lamacchia Realty and an outspoken advocate for Realtors, to discuss the arguments and the outcome of the trial. The recent landmark decision in the Sitzer/Burnett case included multi-billion dollar penalties for the […]
Slowing job growth doesn’t mean a recession, but today’s jobs report tells me that the significant job gains we were accustomed to in the early part of the COVID-19 recovery period are ending, which ties nicely to how I thought labor would recover after COVID. Even though the headline number on the report today beat […]
San Diego Association of Realtors, which operates one of the country’s largest multiple listing service, has new leadership following the departure of alleged fraudster Mike Mercurio. Real estate industry veteran Saul Klein is taking over as the CEO and director of SDAR’s wholly-owned San Diego MLS, according to an announcement on Tuesday. “I am thrilled […]
A date for the final approval conference for RE/MAX’s and Anywhere’s settlement agreements in the Sitzer/Burnett, Moehrl and Nosalek commission lawsuits has finally been set. The conference is slated for Thursday, May 9, 2024, at 10 a.m., according to a text entry on the Sitzer/Burnett court docket on Friday. Both RE/MAX and Anywhere reached settlement […]
Since its founding in 2015, remote online notarization (RON) platform Proof, formerly known as Notarize, has helped sellers and buyers close $347 billion worth of real estate transactions, according to an announcement on Friday. While the firm is pleased with this milestone, it has its sights set on California. On Jan. 1, 2024, Senate Bill […]
Scott Fava has returned to Compass after an almost five-year absence, the brokerage announced on Thursday. Fava is joining Compass from NestSeekers. “We could not be happier to welcome Scott and his team back to Compass and help them accomplish all their business growth and goals,” Gordon Golub, Tri-State Regional Vice President at Compass, said […]
Rocket Pro TPO – the wholesale arm of Rocket Mortgage – made updates to its existing products to court more brokers. Its ONE+ program – a conventional 1% down home loan program that launched in May – will include Freddie Mac‘s loan product advisor (LPA), which could translate to a 16% increase in client eligibility, […]
Few things affect the real estate market more than the rise and fall of interest rates, which has a ripple effect that directly influences everything from buyer behavior to market trends. Lower interest rates make mortgages more accessible, paving the way for more buyers into the market and potentially resulting in increased demand and higher […]
Employers kept a brisk hiring pace in December, exceeding economists’ expectations by 43,000 jobs. Jobs increased by 216,000 in December, up from 173,000 in November, according to data released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Economists were expecting an addition of 170,000 jobs. With December’s numbers in, a total of 2.7 million jobs were added […]
The National Association of Realtors saw its membership numbers drop 1.11% during the last month of the year, as 17,489 former members let their membership lapse. Year-over-year, from Dec. 31, 2022, and Dec. 31, 2023, NAR lost 26,367 members, a 1.67% annual decline, according to NAR’s monthly membership report. The trade group closed out 2023 […]
After a 2023 of real estate brokers saying they feel “neutral” or “pessimistic” about the housing market, some 48% of those surveyed for the Q1 2024 HousingWire BrokerPulse survey are optimistic that the next three months will be positive. In fact, some 60% says that interest rates will go down in the next three months, […]
Editor in Chief Sarah Wheeler sat down with George Brady, loanDepot’s chief information officer, to discuss the company’s evolving tech strategy and how he thinks long-term about tech in a rapidly changing environment. Sarah Wheeler: You joined loanDepot in 2021 from Capital One. What drew you into the mortgage industry? George Brady: You could argue […]
Mortgage tech firm Blend aims to court more lenders as it now supports Fannie Mae’s Desktop Underwriter (DU) early assessment enhancement with a direct integration from Blend’s soft credit pull function. DU early assessment gives lenders more options for their pre-qualification process in DU. Lenders can submit a single soft pull credit file and receive […]
