11/11: LO, C-Level jobs; lender for sale; DPA, fullfillment products; primer on Treasury vs. mortgage rate moves
Veterans Day originated as “Armistice Day” on Nov. 11, 1919, the first anniversary marking the end of World War I. In this country it is a way to honor those who served in all American wars. For those of you who like numbers, there at 18 million military veterans in the United States, of which 1.7 million are females. Over 50% of them are 65 years or older. And the Census Bureau tells us that 9% are younger than age 35. While we’re talking about folks in their 30s, NAR tells us that the median age of first-time home buyers has increased to 33, which is the oldest in records dating back to 1981. The median age (half above, half below) of all buyers also hit a new record high of 47, increasing for a third straight year, and well above the median age of 31 in 1981.
Jobs & business for sale
Interested in working for the VA? There are openings all over the country and new ones pop up all the time. Bookmark the jobs page and check back frequently! Do you want to work in our office? We have Public Affairs Specialist openings, too! Apply Now!”
“We are growing; Come join our team! American Financing is looking for talented and enthusiastic candidates to join our sales, tech, and operation teams. You’d work for a national mortgage company that’s recognized annually as a Top Employer, Top Family-Owned Company, and Fastest Growing Business. At American Financing, we value our employees and offer a fun work environment, with considerable opportunities for professional development and high earning potential. We truly enjoy recognizing and celebrating top talent. If you’re highly motivated with a strong sense of accountability, driven to provide superior customer service — it’s time to join the American Financing family.”
St. Louis-based USA Mortgage,100% employee-owned and Missouri’s largest home lender since 2014, is on the hunt for top C-level talent. Positions to be filled at fast-growing USA, which just crossed the $2 billion threshold in annual loan volume for the first time in its history, include Chief Compliance Officer, General Counsel and Chief Marketing Officer. USA attributes its on-going success to cutting-edge marketing and technology, a robust benefits package, an extensive portfolio of loan products and a unique corporate culture. The nation’s 103rd largest lender (Source: CoreLogic, Inc.) with 600-plus employees, is fresh off of 2019 office openings in Columbus, Dallas, Phoenix, San Diego, San Francisco and Seattle. It currently flags 87 locations in 36 states, with more new offices in new markets on the way. Advancement opportunities for the entrepreneurial minded abound says EVP Ron Mueller. Contact Ron Mueller or visit www.usa-mortgage.com/joinus to learn more.
Excellent Business Purchase Opportunity!! Established more than 37 years ago, one of the nation’s oldest mortgage bankers with licenses in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut seeks to sell its corporate stock, including all of its assets, which consists of not only these three active mortgage bankers licenses, but also its financing programs that are extremely competitive and exclusive to this corporation. The Company has no corporate debt. The Company has excellent standing and is very well regarded in the mortgage banking community. The owner, who has 47 years’ experience and exceptional banking contacts, will continue his participation and involvement with the Company as the qualified holder of the licenses during the license approval process for each state to ensure continuity and continued long term success. Specific information and questions by persons interested in purchasing said Company will be provided during the due diligence process. Contact Chrisman LLC’s Anjelica Nixt to forward your note of interest.
Evergreen Home Loans™ is proud to announce the promotion of Tamra Rieger as Chief Operating Officer (COO). In this role, Rieger continues to serve on the Executive Team and is responsible for the efficiency of the business and implementation of strategic goals, while providing leadership and oversight in secondary marketing, construction lending, processing, underwriting, and funding operations. She also leads digital mortgage technology initiatives driving efficiency and improving the overall customer experience. Rieger has spoken on a number of Digital Mortgage panels this year, sharing the Evergreen success story about adapting and scaling eClose technology. Currently, Evergreen has a 69% capture rate for eligible eClose transactions. Evergreen was also recently recognized by Fortune Magazine as one of the Best Workplaces for Women™ 2019. Congratulations to Tamra Rieger! Evergreen is excited for her new role and the opportunities ahead. Best Workplaces for Women™ is a trademark of Great Place to Work® Institute Inc.
Lender services and products
Take charge of your 2020 production and profitability numbers by getting the book Conquering Shifts into the hands of all of your originators. “There are several reasons I recommend this book. First, it provides a road map to origination success, second it provides numerous examples of mortgage originators who made the necessary shifts in their businesses to grow and win.” Mike Hardwick, Churchill Mortgage. “If I had read this book when I first began originating purchase loans in 2011, I can honestly say I would be leaps and bounds ahead of where I am today. The authors, Cindy Douglas and Kathleen Heck interview some of the most respected originators in the country. To be ahead of the competition study this book” Ryan Grant, Fairway Independent Mortgage. For loan officers and senior management looking to boost production Conquering shifts is a must read. Discount pricing ends November 19.
Join NewRez industry experts Keith Jones, SVP Risk Management, and SVP Non-QM Lending, Lisa Schreiber, at the Inaugural Non-QM Forum presented by Information Management Network (IMN). Keith will share his perspective of historic Non-QM performance on Thursday, November 14th. Then on Friday, Lisa will discuss how to increase efficiency and reduce risk within the origination, approval and closing process. Click here to see the full agenda and register to join the originators and investors that are attending. We hope to see you there!
TrelixTM has become the go-to source for lenders looking for all their fulfillment needs. Whether it’s a single component or full end-to-end services, we provide a complete suite of mortgage solutions. We have a dedicated onboarding team with the knowledge and industry best practices to assist you in developing the program best suited to your needs. Contact Justin Vedder to learn more about the various ways we can help.
You’re probably all-too familiar with the frustration of trying to find a reliable Down Payment Assistance (DPA) program. Well you’re in luck! TMS just updated its DPAssistant to help you find one easily. TMS has compiled a list of more than 125 recommended programs across the country. Check it out here.
Events & training
Register for the next WMBA lunch on Thursday, November 14th. The Income Property Committee will be presenting a panel discussing construction cost strategies.
MBA is offering instructor-guided online course, Introduction to Mortgage Banking. This course will be held from November 5th – November 19th on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 3:30 PM- 5:00 PM EST. This course provides an overview of the residential real estate finance industry as a career development tool for college students and those interested in changing careers, and as a training tool for interns and new hires.
AmeriHome’s Correspondent underwriting management team is inviting Sellers to participate in an upcoming meeting on Thursday, November 14, 2019, discussing VA Lender Handbook Chapter 7 updates.
PRMG announced the release of the Chenoa FHA Rate Advantage and the Chenoa FHA Edge products and one can learn about them in live webinars that will be held several times throughout the month. A pre-recorded training webinar can be accessed at the PRMG University YouTube channel for immediate viewing.
Franklin American Mortgage has published its November 2019 Wholesale “Customer Training Calendar”.
AEI Housing Center’s Research Free Conference Is Coming to NYC on November 12th. Presentation include AEI Housing Market Indicators with Tobias Peter, A Quarter Century of Mortgage Risk with Stephen Oliner and Market Trends Report and Explaining Variability in House Price Appreciation with Ed Pinto.
Register for the Wednesday, November 13th 2019 annual conference of the Minnesota Mortgage Association Conference at Golden Valley Country Club. This will be your chance to learn about the neuroscience of sales with Rene Rodriguez and find out the latest on today’s ibuyer movement along with other great programming like MN Twins CEO Dave St. Peter. All for only $29. Register at http://themma.org/annual-conference/.
NRMLA Annual Meeting November 18th-20th in Nashville will include Keynote Speaker, The Honorable Brian Montgomery at the reverse mortgage industry’s largest annual event. Don’t miss this opportunity to get the latest news on HECM reverse mortgages from the person in charge of the program.
The MBA of Greater Philadelphia is hosting a Secondary Marketing Workshop on November 18. Are You Getting The Best Price For Your Loans? This workshop has 2 sessions, one for new mortgage bankers looking to understand mandatory pricing, moving from Broker to Banker and getting FNMA approval, and the second for more experience capital markets people who want to discuss trade strategies, loan sale best practices, hedging and achieving best price execution across different delivery landscapes. Discussions are led by MCT Trading and Fannie Mae. This is a live event with lunch where Members are free/Nonmembers $35. Come to one session or both. To register, click here
Learn MSR and accounting best practices in San Diego, November 19th with MBA Education and industry experts with two ½ day Workshops. Gain a foundational understanding of mortgage accounting concepts, get your questions answered and hear what challenges your colleagues are encountering. Back by popular demand, register for Fundamentals and Best Practices in Mortgage Accounting. Offered for the first time, take a deep dive into the foundational elements of mortgage servicing rights (MSRs), get your questions answered by industry leaders who have over 20 years of MSR and capital markets experience. Register for Foundational Elements of Mortgage Servicing Rights.
Free homebuyer workshop in Charlotte. Join Wells Fargo Funding and Freddie Mac for a complimentary in-person event in Charlotte, NC, on November 20th. Attendees will learn about market trends and get insights from industry experts; develop new community relationships to strengthen networks; hear from Freddie Mac about how to use data to zero-in on new business opportunities, and how to better serve the borrower of the future. Additionally, Kristin Messerli, Managing Editor for Mortgage Women Magazine and founder of Cultural Outreach, will present on “The future of sales with young and diverse buyers.” The workshop runs from 11:00-3:30 and includes lunch. Approved and prospective Wells Fargo Funding clients are welcome. If interested, contact a member of your regional sales team, or send an email to CorrespondentDiverseSegments@wellsfargo.com.
If you missed MCPAOA’s October webinar, speakers Nanci Weissgold and Anoush Garakani covered a full agenda of issues on Small Servicer Compliance. The recorded webinar and slides are available. Register for MCPAOA’s November 19th Webinar to hear Mitch Kider of Weiner, Brodsky Kider, PC. He will provide insight on the recertification process and disclosure requirements for the GSEs and Agencies. Send your advance questions to Felecia Bowers to ensure they are incorporated into the presentation
Register for CAMP’s November 19th 1099 vs W2 Rule Webinar. Presenter Deb Killian with CLOES, will review What AB5 could mean for your business, Misclassification” of employees, What is the “ABC” test?, How can I correct any “misclassifications”?, What happens if I get caught? And The real cost of misclassifications.
On Wednesday, November 20th, FHA is providing a free, online webinar to provide Quality Assurance results for the most recent quarter, as well as specific information on the FHA Compare Ratio. There will also be a live Question and Answer session at the end of the webinar.
Register for FAMP Central Florida Chapter Monthly Luncheon on November 20th. Guest speaker Daryl Cooper, Director of Single Family Housing for USDA for Florida will discuss Single Close Construction Perm and Rehabilitation Loan Program, SFH Guaranteed Program Integration “RD GRH will be integrating into a Single National Program”, Elimination of the Interest Rate Cap, Florida and National production.
Capital markets
Today the bond markets are closed, but usually each day I tell you the movement of the U.S. 10-year Treasury yield, as rates closely track it. But it is not a one-for-one movement; in fact, only 80 percent of the moves up and down in the 10-year Treasury yield end up being passed through to primary mortgage rates. That may be a good thing for stability in the mortgage market over the last several months, as the yield sat above 2.50 percent back in May then hit a trough below 1.50 percent in early September and is now back towards 2.00 percent with the recent sell off.
As Treasury rates declined in the first three quarters of this year, MBS-to-Treasury spreads widened, reflecting rising concerns about refinance risk and falling risk appetite as global economic growth slowed. Despite the recent pull back, refinance risk remains relevant at current mortgage rate levels for most cohorts, and seasoned specified pools still provide relatively affordable call protection.
Even with some recessionary fears due to Brexit and trade wars, the mortgage market remains strong, with rates expected to remain below 2018 peak levels through next year and solid price appreciation in the foreseeable future. A second reason that primary mortgage rates have moved less than one-for-one with Treasury rates has been the tendency for primary-secondary spreads to widen as Treasury rates fall. The mortgage origination industry has historically been unable or unwilling to scale up underwriting capacity rapidly in a falling interest rate environment and instead has frequently chosen to increase profit margins as demand for mortgage refinancing increases. This has happened once again in 2019, with primary-secondary spreads widening and tightening as Treasury rates fell and rose.
MBS spreads do not always move inversely with interest rates: for example, in 2013, mortgage Option Adjusted Spreads (OAS) widened as interest rate levels increased. But in the current case, the inverse relationship between spreads and rate levels should continue over the medium term. For this reason, MBS is being risk-managed with shorter than average interest rate hedge ratios, and MBS prepayment rates should remain substantially elevated over the next two months with mortgage rates well below 2018 levels and a large number of outstanding mortgage borrowers still in-the-money to refinance. MBS investors looking to minimize refinance risk exposure may still find value in seasoned specified pools which tend to have lower WACs and lower loan sizes than 2019 vintage cheapest-to-deliver pools.
Veterans are people who, at one point in their lives, wrote a blank check payable to the United States of America, for an amount up to and including their lives. Remember ALL of our Vets. Vets and active military personnel are eligible for free items or discounts at many stores and restaurants, the list goes on and on – pass this link on to vets! Or this one.
Visit www.robchrisman.com for more information on our industry partners, access archived commentaries, or to subscribe to the Daily Mortgage News and Commentary. If you’re interested, visit my periodic blog at the STRATMOR Group web site. The current blog is, “Fannie & Freddie: A Snapshot” If you have both the time and inclination, make a comment on what I have written, or on other comments so that folks can learn what’s going on out there from the other readers.
Rob
(Market data provided in partnership with MBS Live. For free job postings and to view candidate resumes visit LenderNews. Currently there are hundreds of mortgage professionals looking for operations, secondary and management roles. For up-to-date mortgage news visit Mortgage News Daily. For archived commentaries, or to subscribe, go to www.robchrisman.com. Copyright 2019 Chrisman LLC. All rights reserved. Occasional paid job listings do appear. This report or any portion hereof may not be reprinted, sold or redistributed without the written consent of Rob Chrisman.)
