Online mortgage lending has helped to revive the market for mortgage loan securitizations; new online mortgage lenders are providing a new wave of mortgage loan securitizations for the market specifically with fix and flips; these loans are attractive to investors because of the high yields and offer investors shorter duration investments because of the fix and flip focus; despite defaults and structuring inefficiencies created from the 2008 financial crisis, institutional investors are placing confidence in these investments; LendingHome has been leading the market with steady issuance of fix and flip loan securitizations and the products have been performing successfully for investors indicating the niche investments could begin to scale more broadly. Source
LendingHome will now offer an online mortgage product for consumers; LendingHome was launched in 2014 and has been funding short-term bridge and rental loans for property investors; the platform has funded over $1 billion in loans; features of the product include: an automated process, real time rates, loan guidance and real estate agent connectivity. Source
Automated mortgage transaction technology firm Roostify has announced Frank Gelbart as its new chief revenue officer; Frank Gelbart has over 20 years of experience with technology companies and was previously president, CEO and co-founder of Appfluent Technology; Roostify is a fast growing startup and is currently partnering with JPMorgan for mortgage lending technology innovation. Source
Online mortgage broker Trussle is currently in the early stages of talks with the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to potentially overhaul the mortgage application process; the plan that Trussle is pitching to the FCA is to help standardize documents needed in a format that they are needed in; Mr. Mahli told FTAdviser: "There's an unnecessary inefficiency in the way mortgage applications are packaged and submitted, which varies wildly from lender to lender. Uncertainty is the last thing a buyer wants when making what's often the biggest financial decision of their life."; currently the FCA will not comment on talks that are in such a nascent stage. Source
According to HousingWire Amazon is exploring the mortgage lending business and is actively hiring in the new division; the company is already rumored to be looking into offering a checking product. Source
Leading digital transaction management firm eOriginal has been selected to manage electronic documentation processes for Fannie Mae; as a government sponsored enterprise (GSE) Fannie Mae works with lenders nationwide; the eOriginal services will help improve all of the GSE's associated mortgage loan transactions providing support for lenders and loan portfolio services for Fannie Mae; in comments on the partnership, Cindy McKissock, vice president of customer digital experience at Fannie Mae said: "We continually look for ways to help lenders who want to deliver an end-to-end digital mortgage experience. In addition to investing in new eVault infrastructure, we are also simplifying eMortgage adoption by transitioning to the MISMO SMART Doc™ Version 3.0 format in 2017. This will reduce complexity and allow lenders and technology solution providers to adopt eMortgage with greater ease." Source
"Rocket Mortgage has forever changed the way people think about getting a mortgage," said Jay Farner, CEO of Quicken Loans; for 2016 Quicken Loans has reported record originations of $96 billion with $7 billion contributed by Rocket Mortgage which has been originating loans for 11 months; consumers have reported high demand for the Rocket Mortgage product which provides a much simpler process for homeowners by digitally verifying income, credit, assets and property valuations. Source
Better Mortgage is now offering mortgage loans in thirteen states with the expansion to Florida; the lender offers a number of advantages for borrowers including a 100% digital experience and a verified pre-approval letter for qualified borrowers within 24 hours; with the licensing in Florida, Better Mortgage gains access to lending in Tampa and Jacksonville, recently reported as two of the healthiest housing markets in the country. Source
Blend has signed new bank partnership agreements and announced fundraising of $100 million; the firm will partner with Wells Fargo and US Bancorp, providing its mortgage software to help improve the mortgage application process for the two large banks; concurrently, it has also completed a $100 million fundraising round led by Greylock Partners that will increase its value to approximately $500 million and allow it to potentially expand to other lending markets. Source
The Senate passed a banking bill meant to roll back some of the financial regulations imposed after the crisis, but its fate is uncertain in the House; Republicans in the House want a further rollback of regulations; the bill is intended to help smaller banks avoid burdensome federal oversight and raises the definition of systemically important to $250bn from $50bn; the bill also makes adjustments to parts of the Volcker Rule and eases mortgage rules for smaller lenders. Source.