In The News

Agile, a fintech bringing mortgage lenders and broker dealers on to a single electronic platform, has facilitated the execution of the mortgage industry’s first ever fully-automated Assignment of Trade (AOT) transaction. AOTs are an increasing popular industry practice that involves three counterparties – mortgage originator, mortgage investor, and broker dealer – transferring loan collateral and hedge positions to a mortgage investor.

MISMO, the real estate finance industry’s standards organization, announced that it is seeking public comment on a new white paper titled, Blockchain in the Mortgage Industry. The white paper outlines findings about how blockchain technology could enhance the way mortgages are originated, serviced, sold, and traded by improving efficiency, enabling transparency, and increasing trust among market participants. The 60-day comment period runs through May 30, 2023.

WFG National Title Insurance Company’s Lender Services division has expanded its DecisionPoint Instant Title Solution suite to include Rapid Legal & Vesting services. This new offering complements the organization’s existing roster of comprehensive national title and closing services offered through the company’s Enterprise Solutions group.

Garris Horn LLP, a national law firm serving the financial services industry, has added renowned litigation attorney James Brody and seasoned colleague Ingrid Petersen as partners. 

BSI Financial Services, a mortgage operating platform, announced Harold Lewis has been hired as president and COO. In this newly created position, Lewis will be responsible for scaling BSI Financial’s platform and delivering value to its customers through the combination of improved operational efficiency, reduced risks, technology advancements and exceptional talent.

Homebuyer affordability declined in February, with the national median payment applied for by purchase applicants increasing 4.9 percent to $2,061 from $1,964 in January. This is according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Purchase Applications Payment Index (PAPI), which measures how new monthly mortgage payments vary across time – relative to income – using data from MBA’s Weekly Applications Survey (WAS).

As metro Atlanta homebuyers encounter the challenging trifecta of sharply rising home prices, elevated interest rates and institutional investor depletion of starter home inventory, Down Payment Resource (DPR), a provider of technology for connecting home buyers with homebuyer assistance programs, released a comprehensive report on the 46 metro Atlanta homebuyer assistance programs. DPR issued the report to raise community awareness about resources that can make homeownership attainable for more families.

Mortgage Cadence, a subsidiary of Accenture (NYSE: ACN), has announced George Morales has joined the company as its new Reverse Mortgage Product Manager.

Xactus, a verification provider that serves the mortgage industry, is offering real-time IRS data feeds through TaxStatus, a top provider of official tax data and IRS account monitoring.

Mortgage applications increased 3.0 percent from one week earlier, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending March 17, 2023.