The Lede

Washington Post, Aug. 8, 2019--Kathy Orton
Driven down by worries about a trade war with China, mortgage rates have sunk to multiyear lows, which caused mortgage applications to pick up. According to the latest data from the Mortgage Bankers Association, the market composite index--a measure of total loan application volume--increased 5.3 percent from a week earlier.

National Mortgage Professional, Aug. 8, 2019--Phil Hall
The mortgage credit availability declined slightly last month, according to the Mortgage Credit Availability Index report published by the Mortgage Bankers Association.

Wall Street Journal, Aug 8, 2019--Matt Wirz, Christina Rexrode, Rachel Louise Ensign (subscription)
Falling bond yields have pushed mortgage rates to their lowest level in nearly three years, spurring a rush by homeowners to refinance.

National Mortgage News, Aug. 8, 2019--Bonnie Sinnock (subscription)
More applications for non-QM loans might close if lenders and originators beefed up efforts to address missing or outdated information, according to a new Computershare study.

Orange County Register, Aug. 8, 2019--Jeff Lazerson
Ticktock. You have until Aug. 31 to cash out up to 85% of your property's value by refinancing your Federal Housing Administration loan. Starting Sept. 1, new rules kick in limiting FHA cash-out refinancing to 80% of your property's value. (MBA mention)

HousingWIre, Aug. 8, 2019--Ben Lane
According to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Upstart Network's credit underwriting model uses traditional underwriting data like borrowers' income and assets, along with various categories of alternative data, including information related to borrowers' education and employment history.

Wall Street Journal, Aug. 8, 2019--Harriet Torry (subscription)
Private-sector economic forecasters surveyed in recent days by The Wall Street Journal on average saw a 63.9% probability for a rate cut at the Fed's Sept. 17-18 meeting, up from 49.8% in the prior month's survey.

GeekWire, Aug. 8, 2019--Nat Levy
CEO Rich Barton said on a call with investors that Zillow has slowed hiring of mortgage officers as it continues to test the software and work out the kinks.

National Real Estate Investor, Aug. 8, 2019--Liz Wolf
The $5 billion American Dream mall project in New Jersey is betting big on entertainment components. Can it succeed?

Ellie Mae, Pleasanton, Calif., said a "dramatic" drop in mortgage interest rates has led to an active refinance market for Millennials.

Redfin, Seattle, reported just 11 percent of offers nationwide faced a bidding war in July, down from more than 45 percent a year earlier, the lowest rate of bidding wars since at least 2011.

The office sector should likely remain resilient despite moderating U.S. economic growth, said Transwestern, Houston.

Preferred Office Properties, Atlanta, acquired CapTrust Tower in Raleigh, N.C., from KBS, Newport Beach, Calif.

The Mortgage Bankers Association's annual Human Resources Symposium takes place Sept. 11-12 at the Hyatt Regency in Crystal City, Va.

MBA Education presents its popular School of Mortgage Banking Course II in several locations this summer and fall.

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