-After falling to start the year, mortgage rates rose for the second consecutive week—up to 6.32%. The National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) previously predicted that rates would settle around 5% by the end of the year.
-Heavy lies the crown! Jay Farner, CEO of Rocket Companies (parent of Rocket Mortgage and Rocket Homes) announced his retirement this week after 27 years with the company. Bill Emerson, another longtime Rocket executive, is filling in as interim CEO.
–Fannie Mae saw its net income fall by a cool $1 billion in Q4 2022, with CEO Priscilla Almodovar saying that the earnings reflected “a housing market in transition.” The decline was caused by a shift of $11.4 billion to provision for credit losses, according to Fannie Mae.
-Real estate giant Howard Hanna launched a community-based mortgage company, called United Purpose Mortgage, focused on underserved communities, with planned grassroots partnerships through churches and other community organizations.
-In a worrying development, the first audit of the Federal Home Loan Bank system in over a decade found “higher risk” in one of two affordable housing programs, according to National Mortgage News. A larger review of the system by the Federal Finance Housing Agency is ongoing.
-In what was apparently a whirlwind of confusion and chaos, Illinois-based Celebrity Home Loans laid off 92% of its staff but was unable to answer basic questions from employees about a merger with On Q Financial, according to the National Mortgage Professional. Some employees had been previously furloughed, while others apparently did not receive compensation.
