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Economy

Looser underwriting boosts serious default risk in 1Q25

Distressed, Economy, Servicing, Underwriting /

Some loosening in mortgage underwriting contributed to the 8-basis-point quarter-to-quarter increase in the Milliman Mortgage Default Index. This measurement is an estimate of the lifetime serious delinquency rate, which Milliman defines as loans for which the borrower is 180 or more days late on their payments. It looks at loans acquired by the government-sponsored enterprises […]

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Donald Trump

Trump’s BLS firing impacts perceptions more than numbers

Economic indicators, Economy, Politics and policy, Trump administration /

Bloomberg News By firing one of the country’s top economic research officials, President Donald Trump might have instilled less confidence in the legitimacy of government-produced data rather than more.  On Friday, Trump terminated Bureau of Labor Statistics Commissioner Erika McEntarfer, claiming that she “rigged” the data in last week’s employment situation report to hurt the

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Trump to set new tariffs before midnight, White House says

Economy, Homebuilders, Tariffs /

President Donald Trump will sign an executive order on Thursday imposing new tariff rates on trading partners that take effect Friday, the White House said.  The signing will take place “at some point this afternoon or later this evening,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters during a news briefing, adding that “Aug. 1,

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Jerome Powell

Powell: ‘Many, many uncertainties’ remain for tariff impacts

Economy, Monetary policy, Politics and policy, Tariffs /

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome PowellBloomberg News WASHINGTON — Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said the central bank is still trying to get a handle on how higher tariffs will impact the economy.  Powell said it was always going to take time for higher import levies to translate into higher prices for consumers, but the administration’s

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Fannie Mae cuts rate forecast, raises volume outlook

Economy, MARKETING TO BORROWERS, Mortgage Rates, Originations /

Fannie Mae now projects lower mortgage rates and increased volume for this year and next, raising its home sales expectations from June. By contrast, the Mortgage Bankers Association cut its origination outlook for 2025 in its own July forecast. The MBA’s rate expectations for both this year and next, as well as the 2026 volume

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Stagnant home sales likely to be a drag on US economy

Economy, Housing markets /

The ongoing slump in existing home sales is quite likely to curb consumer spending in the U.S. in the not-too-distant future, economists at First American Financial warn. With the exception of the fourth quarter of 2024, existing home sales have declined year-over-year for 15 consecutive quarters. But durable goods purchases tied to housing are still

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Mortgage rates rise as investors react to inflation news

Economy, Mortgage Rates /

Mortgage rates rose this week as the latest Consumer Price Index report further dashed hopes in some minds for a Federal Open Market Committee reduction in short-term rates at its July meeting. “The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage inched up this week and continues to stay within a narrow range under 7%,” said Sam Khater, Freddie Mac

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Grocery store aisle

Uptick in CPI inflation complicates case for rate cuts

Economy, Inflation, Monetary policy, Politics and policy /

Bloomberg News Inflation continued to rise in June, driven by rising costs of housing and suggesting the Trump administration’s emerging tariff policy is beginning to impact consumer prices.  The Bureau of Economic Analysis reported that the Consumer Price Index increased 0.3% in June for an annualized climb of 2.7%. Core CPI, which factors out food

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No Fed cut in July, nearly all economists surveyed say

Economy, Federal Reserve, Housing markets, Mortgage Rates, Politics and policy /

Despite speculation following the Federal Open Market Committee’s June meeting that a rate cut could come as early as this month, most economists still expect the central bank to hold off until September or later. Only one respondent in Wolters Kluwer’s Blue Chip Economic Indicators survey, conducted July 7 and 8, after the stronger-than-expected June

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Mortgage rates turn upward on strong jobs data

Economy, MARKETING TO BORROWERS, Mortgage Rates, Originations /

The stronger-than-expected employment report is the catalyst for ending a five-week streak of declining mortgage rates, Freddie Mac reported. The 30-year fixed rate mortgage averaged 6.72% as of July 10, a gain of 5 basis points compared with the prior week when it averaged 6.67%, the Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey reported. But it

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