FromAround TheWWW

HousingWireHousingWire California-based mortgage lender loanDepot has hired military advocate Bryan Bergjans as part of an effort to boost its lending capacity in the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) space.  Bergjans joined the company this month as its national director of military growth and strategy. Before that, Bergjans spent eight…

HousingWireHousingWire There’s a new brokerage on the block. The recently launched Realty of America (ROA) is a fully virtual brokerage co-founded by CEO Eddie Garcia, President Mark Dimas, chief culture officer Erinn Nobel and chief operating officer Peter Nobel. The firm is launching in 23 markets across the country and has more…

HousingWireHousingWire In the real estate industry, referral fees have become a golden goose that stifles innovation, inflates the value chain, and ultimately harms both consumers and agents. Despite their prevalence, the current system is ripe for reexamination. The referral fee conundrum Referral fees are a familiar practice in real estate….

HousingWireHousingWire Have we seen the bottom in mortgage rates for 2024 after a crazy roller coaster ride so far this year? My 2024 forecast had a mortgage rate range of 7.25%-5.75%. To get to the lower end of this range, we needed to see two things: the labor market getting…

HousingWireHousingWire The Federal Reserve did something this week it hadn’t done in more than four years when it lowered the federal funds rate by half a percentage point. But for mortgage industry professionals hampered by fewer sales opportunities since the Fed’s streak of rate hikes began in March 2022, will…