Nationwide housing production gained 2.6 percent from an upwardly revised pace in March to hit a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 717,000 units in April, according to newly released figures from the U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development (HUD). This modest gain was seen in both the single- and multifamily sectors, which registered growth of 2.3 percent and 3.2 percent, respectively.Click to continue

Mortgage applications increased 9.2 percent from one week earlier, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending May 11, 2012. The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, increased 9.2 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier. On an unadjusted basis, the Index increased 8.7 percent compared with the previous week. The Refinance Index increased 13 percent from the previous week.Click to continue

LenderMobile, a provider of mobile mortgage loan applications for iPads, has added two new features to its LenderMobile+ flagship app in response to users’ requests. The new imaging feature lets loan originators and borrowers take photos of documents with the iPad camera and add the images to loan files through cloud computing technology. Plus, the new loan notes feature lets users add notes to a loan file directly from their iPad.Click to continue

The National Association of Realtors (NAR) composite quarterly Housing Affordability Index (HAI) rose to a record high of 205.9 in the first quarter of 2012, based on the relationship between median home price, median family income and average mortgage interest rate. The higher the index, the greater the household purchasing power. This is the first time the quarterly index broke the 200 mark; recordkeeping began in 1970.Click to continue

Builder confidence in the market for newly built, single-family homes gained five points in May from a downwardly revised reading in the previous month to reach a level of 29 on the latest National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI), the HMI's strongest reading since May of 2007.Click to continue

According to the Freddie Mac Quarterly Product Transition Report, in the first quarter of 2012, fixed-rate mortgages (FRMs) accounted for more than 95 percent of refinance loans. Refinancing borrowers preferred fixed-rate loans, regardless of whether their original loan was an adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) or an FRM. Of borrowers who refinanced during Q1, 31 percent reduced their loan term by paying off a 30-year loan and replacing it with a 20-year FRM, 15-year FRM or other shorter-term loan.Click to continue

Lender Processing Services Inc. (LPS) has announced that its LPS Applied Analytics division updated its home price index (LPS HPI) with residential sales concluded during February 2012. "Our HPI shows an increase in seasonally adjusted prices this month for the first time since March 2010, and for only the third time in five years,” said Raj Dosaj, vice president of LPS Applied Analytics. “There have been signs of price declines slowing for a few months now, and our estimates for next month are flat to slightly positive.Click to continue

Financial Industry Computer Systems Inc. (FICS), a provider of loan origination software (LOS) for the mortgage industry, released the third generation of its comprehensive LOS platform, Loan Producer Version 6.00. Current technological advancements provide the basis for this completely rewritten infrastructure and revitalized graphical user interface. The most significant benefit to lenders is the streamlined workflow and usability of the rich user interface, which provides simple navigation and a more efficient workflow for managing loan applications.Click to continue

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has outlined rules that it is considering to simplify mortgage points and fees and bring greater transparency to the mortgage loan origination market. The CFPB expects to propose the rules this summer and finalize them by Jan. 21, 2013. The CFPB is considering proposals that would:Click to continue

Freddie Mac has released the results of its Primary Mortgage Market Survey (PMMS), showing 30-year fixed-rate mortgages (FRMs) averaging 3.83 percent with an average 0.7 point for the week ending May 10, 2012, down from last week when it averaged 3.84 percent. Last year at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 4.63 percent. The 30-year FRM has averaged below four percent all but one week since Dec. 8, 2011, helping to keep homebuyer affordability high.Click to continue