Editor’s Note: The Mortgage Mix is RISMedia’s biweekly highlight reel of need-to-know mortgage-industry happenings. Watch for it every other Friday afternoon.
– Rocket, United Wholesale Mortgage (UWM) and 24 major lenders have been named in a lawsuit alleging price-fixing amongst the organizations. The suit alleges that the lenders collaborated with mortgage software provider Optimal Blue via the platform’s business analytics tools (Competitive Analytics and Competitive Data) to share private information among themselves and raise prices. Known as Mendez v. Optimal Blue, the lawsuit has been filed in Tennessee and is seeking monetary restitution.
– Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are permanently closing two New York offices directly due to Attorney General Letitia James’ “corrupt and dangerous business practices” in the state, as reported by Fox News Digital. “We’ll still employ New York residents, and we’ll still continue to do mortgage loans in New York, of course,” a source close to the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) told Fox. “But we are going to eliminate our physical presence.” As of Thursday, James has now been indicted in her mortgage fraud case where she was alleged of bank fraud and making false statements to a financial institution.
– The scope of a class-action lawsuit against UWM has been narrowed by a judge, according to National Mortgage Professional. In the case alleging that UWM and mortgage brokers schemed to charge borrowers excess fees and costs, Judge Brandy R. McMillion has dropped all Racketeer Influenced and Corruption Organization Act (RICO) claims and all but two plaintiffs’ Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA) claims.
– Equifax announced it will offer its VantageScore® 4.0 mortgage credit scores at a 50%-plus reduction from FICO 2026 prices, or $4.50, through the end of 2027, according to the Wall Street Journal. The move came after Fair Issac, creator of the FICO score, unveiled a plan Oct. 1 to sell its credit scores directly to mortgage lenders and resellers, allowing mortgage lenders to bypass credit bureaus for credit scores.
– Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have rolled back some requirements for lenders during the government shutdown, according to an internal bulletin. Because of the potential inability to confirm income, reserves, tax and Social Security information during the shutdown, certain guidelines have been applied to allow mortgage operations to continue. The GSEs are waiving the typical 30-day limit for paystubs—now requiring the most recent earnings statement pre-shutdown—and are waiving verification of employment if lenders provide documentation of their efforts and confirm the borrower is employed.
