At the same time, the increase in interest rates drove fewer borrowers to refinance their loans, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

The Low-Income First Time Homebuyers Act (LIFT) establishes a program to sponsor 20-year mortgages that would build equity at twice the rate of a conventional 30-year mortgage.

“The net result for housing is that these low and stable rates allow consumers more time to find the homes they are looking to purchase,” Freddie Mac Chief Economist Sam Khater said.

Two of the largest leaders in the real estate market are joining forces to form a new mortgage origination company.

On a year-over-year basis, new-home mortgage applications were down 5.9% in May, the Mortgage Bankers Association reported, citing its Builder Application Survey.

Homebuyers lucky enough to win a bidding war for a property are increasingly running headlong into appraisals that don’t match — or even come close to — the agreed sales price, leaving them with limited ways to close the sale.

“This is a sign that the competitive purchase market, driven by low housing inventory and high demand, is pushing prices higher and weighing down on activity.” — Mortgage Bankers Association Associate Vice President of Economic and Industry Forecasting Joel Kan

The new technology streamlines workflow in the mortgage industry.

To help you best serve clients in these uncertain times, we consulted with three of the city’s top lenders to find out their expectations for 2021 and what changes caused by the pandemic are here to stay.

“The consistent decline in serious delinquency since August is a sign of growing financial stability for families,” said Frank Martell, president and CEO of CoreLogic.

The ad is part of their national brand campaign, Believe You Will, which encourages the power of positive thinking and believing you can accomplish your goals.

Shaughnessy Rice was named vice president of mortgage lending for Guaranteed Rate in Illinois and will be based in Champaign, according to a press release. 

This means homebuyers will be able to borrow up to the new level without triggering higher interest rates.

Four months after mortgage lenders started to tighten their standards in reaction to COVID-19-related uncertainty, Chicagoland lenders say they have yet to see a dramatic slowdown.

Borrowing money can be a tricky undertaking for first-time homebuyers, but that’s long been the case in communities of color, where disparities in lending are a reality in the industry.

How has the latest drop in interest rates affected the businesses of Chicagoland brokers? Has their relationship changed with their most recommended lenders? These questions and more were answered by readers in our most recent survey.