States with a higher case rate of coronavirus infections saw a larger drop in purchase-mortgage applications in March, according to the CFPB.

The economic damage caused by the pandemic took a bite out of Freddie’s first-quarter results. More trouble lies ahead, including forced MSR transfers.

When the going gets tough, the wholesale channel is often the first to go. Mr. Cooper this week shuttered its broker platform, but will other table-funders follow suit?

Lenders continued to increase loan originator compensation in the first quarter of 2020. However, this party won’t last long as the industry braces for recession, job losses and tighter underwriting.

Wells Fargo has been the top lender in total home loan production since Countrywide hit the skids in the second quarter of 2008. But Quicken took the top spot in early 2020. (Includes two data charts.)

Mortgage bankers have been clamoring for liquidity help from the FHFA. This week, the agency delivered on the issue of the GSEs buying COVID-19-related forbearance loans, but then lenders read the fine print.

In a sign of hope for the non-QM market, Sprout Mortgage resumed offering expanded-credit products last week.

Economists at Fannie and Freddie are “relatively optimistic” about mortgage originations in 2020, despite the economic impact of COVID-19. But not if social distancing remains in place beyond May.

Regulators have acknowledged that the lack of legal clarity and the speedy implementation of the new forbearance requirements may set the stage for exploitation by unscrupulous or ill-informed servicers.

Temporary prohibitions imposed by Pennsylvania could shutdown mortgage originations, the MBA warned. Meanwhile, the trade group noted that servicing standards set by Washington, DC, differ from federal ones.