Real estate agents have significant influence when it comes to which lender a homebuyer will choose, according to new research by Campbell Surveys, based on a national survey sponsored byInside Mortgage Finance Publications. Tom Popik, research director of Campbell Surveys, said real estate agents recommend specific mortgage providers for 55 percent of their mortgage-financed transactions, on average. When agents recommend mortgage providers, homebuyers use one of the recommended mortgage providers 68 percent of the time, on average. “We can therefore impute...

The U.S. Supreme Court this week dealt a heavy blow to the mortgage industry, holding that the Department of Labor’s most recent regulatory interpretation is valid, meaning mortgage loan officers are eligible for overtime pay. The DOL went back and forth, through formal rulemaking and regulator interpretations, on whether loan officers should be exempt. At one point, it said lenders did not have to pay LOs overtime because they fit in the so-called administrative exemption. But in its most recent position, a 2010 opinion letter, the agency said loan officers are not exempt from the protections of the Fair Labor Standards Act, including overtime pay. The Mortgage Bankers Association challenged...

A major snag on getting deals completed is the "earn-out" agreement.

Most people who are not in straight-jackets believe the chances of GSE reform by 2016 are pretty much zero. Just in case you were wondering and needed a reminder…

NYCB Mortgage Co. is the top contributor to the jumbo MBS with a 13.5 percent share.

Universal American Mortgage posted the highest FHA growth rate at 161 percent...

A major cross-selling opportunity? A report from Credit Suisse notes that, “Every month, JGW receives over 60,000 inbound calls from consumers…”

The CFPB seems to be spending quite a bit of time defending its "rate checker" tool, which is still in beta testing.

When it comes to mortgage overtime, management might just say "no."

The Supreme Court decision on overtime pay for loan officers is just over 48 hours old, but already some companies are fearing the worst...