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FinCEN defends anti-money laundering rule ahead of Dec. 1 deadline

Department of the Treasury, Fidelity National Financial, FinCEN, HWmember, Regulatory, Scott Bessent, Title /

The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), its director Andrea Gacki, as well as the Department of the Treasury and its secretary, Scott Bessent, do not believe their anti-money laundering rule, which is slated to go into effect on Dec. 1, 2025, will cause Fidelity National Financial (FNF) irreparable harm. The defendants made these claims in […]

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Fed cuts rates by 25 bps as inflation lingers, labor market weakens 

Employment, Federal Reserve, HWmember, Inflation, Jerome Powell, LendingLife, Mortgage, Mortgage Rates, Regulatory /

The Federal Reserve lowered its benchmark interest rate by 25 basis points on Wednesday, setting the target range at 4% to 4.25%. The first cut since December 2024 marks a new phase in the central bank’s effort to balance maximum employment and stable prices. Economists say it could usher in an easing cycle with direct

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Stephen Miran confirmed as Fed governor ahead of FOMC meeting

Federal Open Market Committee, Federal Reserve, HWmember, Mortgage, Politics, Regulatory, Trump administration, U.S. Senate /

In a narrow 48-47 vote, the U.S. Senate confirmed economist Stephen Miran to the Federal Reserve Board of Governors on Monday evening ahead of a highly anticipated FOMC meeting. Miran, chairman of the White House Council of Economic Advisers, was approved by the Senate Banking Committee last week with all Republicans voting in favor and

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Court rules against Trump, allowing Fed Governor Lisa Cook to vote on rate cuts

Bill Pulte, Federal Reserve, HWmember, Mortgage, Mortgage Fraud, Politics, Regulatory, Trump administration /

A federal appeals court on Monday evening denied a last-minute attempt by President Trump to block Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook from participating in the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting this week. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit‘s decision upheld federal Judge Jia Cobb’s order last week that blocked

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Trump wants quarterly earnings reports to become a relic of the past

Donald Trump, Earnings, Housing Market, HWmember, Regulatory, Securities and Exchange Commission, Trump administration /

President Donald Trump on Monday renewed his call for U.S. companies to move away from quarterly earnings reports, building upon an idea he floated during his first term. Since 1970, the nearly 3,700 publicly traded companies in the U.S. — including mortgage and real estate companies — have been required to disclose their financial results

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Lisa Cook loan docs listing ‘vacation home’ seem to undermine mortgage fraud claims

Bill Pulte, Federal Reserve, HWmember, Jerome Powell, Mortgage, Mortgage Fraud, Politics, Regulatory /

Mortgage documents have been at the center of an effort by President Donald Trump to fire Fed Governor Lisa Cook over alleged mortgage fraud, but a loan estimate from 2021, first seen and reported by Reuters on Friday, seems to undermine those allegations. The loan estimate for an Atlanta condo Cook bought in 2021 shows

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Commerce Secretary Lutnick says Fannie, Freddie IPO ‘could well be this year’

Conservatorship, Department of Commerce, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, GSE Reform, GSEs, HWmember, IPO, Mortgage, Regulatory, Trump administration /

As the mortgage industry prepares for the Trump Administration’s plans for an initial public offering (IPO) of the government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, U.S. Department of Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick appeared on CNBC to offer his comments on the subject. During the interview aired Thursday, Lutnick disclosed that the IPO “could well

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Ohio property tax debate intensifies

Affordability, First-Time Homebuyers, Homebuyers, Homeownership, HWmember, Ohio, Politics, Property Tax, Real Estate, Regulatory /

Efforts to abolish or deeply reform property taxes are gaining momentum in multiple states — including Ohio — where impassioned debate has cited potential funding shortfalls for local services, seniors being prices out of homes and further effects on the housing market. Howard Fleeter, an economist with the Ohio Education Policy Institute who has worked

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911,000 jobs cut in latest revisions. Is the Fed already too late?

Bureau of Labor Statistics, Federal Reserve, Housing Market, HWmember, Jerome Powell, Jobs Report, Regulatory /

The annual job revisions data was released today, which showed that 911,000 jobs that were supposedly created from March 2024 to March 2025 were removed from the books. The estimates were for 818,000 jobs to be lost in this report, so it came in worse than expected. Lower job growth has been a theme recently,

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Top 5 IMB priorities for GSEs in a post-conservatorship world

Community Home Lenders of America, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, GSE Reform, GSEs, Opinion, Origination, Regulatory /

On Friday, 46 independent mortgage banks (IMBs) jointly sent a letter to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and FHFA Director Bill Pulte, laying out priorities for IMBs for a successful Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac exit from conservatorship. Spearheaded by the Community Home Lenders of America (CHLA), the only national group that exclusively represents IMBs, this IMB sign-on

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