Several publicly held nonbank lenders took a beating on servicing hedges and other factors during the fourth quarter of 2018, according to a new Inside Mortgage Trends analysis of earnings reports. Seven public firms reported a combined loss of $120.53 million on mortgage banking activity during the fourth quarter. [Includes one data chart]

Despite hefty declines in their sales volume last year, Wells Fargo and PennyMac continued to rank as the top sources of third-party originations in agency mortgage-backed securities. [Includes one data chart]

A disparity between black and white homeowners regarding the value of their homes is making the racial wealth gap much worse, according to a new study from the Urban Institute.

The mortgage market expects output to be flat this year, but digital mortgage lender Better.com said it could double its production to $2.5 billion. “We did about $1.3 billion last year, which is three times what we did in 2017,” the company’s President Jerry Selitto said.

In a lackluster market amid rising interest rates and limited inventory, advisory firm Strategic Mortgage Finance Group has advice on how mortgage lenders can remain profitable.

Industry groups have once again requested federal regulators delay a new accounting standard for credit losses. The Current Expected Credit Loss standard is scheduled to be implemented on a phased-in basis beginning in January.

Commercial banks and savings institutions increased the amount of mortgage servicing rights they handle for other investors in the fourth quarter of 2018, although valuations for the asset softened. [Includes one data chart]

Retail mortgage lending remained the dominant originations channel in 2018, but it lost some luster to third-party production channels. [Includes two data charts]

Origination of FHA-insured reverse mortgages fell more than 30% in December due to the partial government shutdown and an overall slowdown in production volume.

loanDepot this week launched a digital mortgage product, mello smartloan, promising quick turn times for more than half of its loan applicants. The nonbank lender claims borrowers can now close their mortgages in just eight days.