President Trump has appointed Joseph Otting the Acting Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, a position that will begin after current Director Mel Watt leaves in early January. Otting will remain at the FHFS until a replacement is confirmed. He serves as the current Comptroller of the Currency, a role he will continue to hold--even after he replaces Watt.

"I am honored that President Trump has named me Acting Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency,” said Otting. “I look forward to serving in this additional role until a permanent Director is confirmed and appointed to this important position. I want to thank outgoing Director Mel Watt for his long service to the country.”

“I congratulate Comptroller of the Currency Joseph Otting on being named Acting Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency as my successor, effective Jan. 7, 2019,” said Watt. “I have served with Comptroller Otting as a member of the Financial Stability Oversight Council and both the OCC and FHFA have offices in the same building. The highly professional staff at FHFA, and I look forward to working with him to ensure a seamless transition.”

Otting made clear he plans to continue the work of the OCC to ensure the federal banking system operates in a safe, sound, and fair manner, and he looks forward to leading the FHFA in its important roles overseeing the Federal Home Loan Bank System and as conservator of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

In 2018, the OCC made great progress promoting the federal banking system’s ability to encourage economic growth and create jobs. In 2019, Otting plans to modernize the regulations implementing the Community Reinvestment Act, making Bank Secrecy Act compliance more efficient and effective, encouraging banks to provide customers more short-term small dollar credit options, and supporting responsible innovation in the federal banking system by beginning to accept national bank charter applications from fintech companies engaged in the business of banking.

The percentage of borrowers that purchased adjustable-rate mortgages reached 8.9 percent, the highest it’s been since Ellie Mae began tracking data in 2011.

The increase in ARMs is directly correlated to the 30-year rate, which rose to 5.15 in November, up from 5.01 the month prior, according to the November Origination Insight Report from Ellie Mae. For FHAs, the 30-year rate increased from 5.05 in October to 5.19 in November. Conventional rates increased from 5.03 in October to 5.17 in November, and Veteran Affair rates rose from 4.83 to 4.99.

“As interest rates continue to rise, we are seeing the percentage of adjustable-rate mortgages rise in lockstep, and this month they’ve risen to the highest percentage we’ve seen since we began tracking data,” said Jonathan Corr, president and CEO of Ellie Mae. “As expected, we are also continuing to see the percentage of refinances remain low—30 percent in November—due to higher interest rates.”

Other statistics of note in November included:

• The time to close all loans increased to 46 days in November, up from 45 days in October. Time to close a purchase loan increased to 48 days, up from 46 days in October, while time to close a refinance remained at 43 days for the second consecutive month.
• The percentage of purchase loans rose to 70 percent of total loans in November, up from 68 percent the month prior.
• Overall, FICO scores remained steady at 727 in November for the third month. Loan to value held at 79 for the fourth month, and debt to income held at 26/39 for the second month.

The Origination Insight Report mines data from around 80 percent of mortgage applications tinitiated on Encompass.

For a second consecutive month, there was a year-over-year increase in the number of homes for sale in November. The culprit home sales declined for a fourth consecutive month when compared to the same months in 2017, because prices remained strong, according to the RE/MAX National Housing Report.

Across the 53 metro areas surveyed, inventory rose 3percent, the highest monthly year-over-year gain in the 10-year history of the report, following October's 1 percent increase that ended a streak of 119 months of year-over-year declines dating back to November 2008. The Month’s Supply of Inventory rose to 3.9, the highest for any month since the statistic was recorded at 4.2 in December 2016.

November home sales, meanwhile, declined 6.9 percent, which was the second-largest year-over-year decline of 2018 and the biggest year-over-year sales decline for November in five years. This year only April and July sales exceeded 2017 totals for the corresponding months.

"The road to market normalization can be bumpy," said Adam Contos, CEO of RE/Max. "It's good to see the small uptick in inventory, and the drop in November sales isn't too surprising--given the recent trends, the mid-term elections, and the earlier-than-usual Thanksgiving holiday. As we near year-end, three main themes appear clear: Buyers are grappling with affordability issues and tight inventory; sellers are unsure how to react to the cooling market; and homes are still selling quickly when priced right."

November's Median Sales Price of $235,000 was 4 percent higher than November 2017 and was the highest November price in the report's history. It marked the 32nd consecutive month of year-over-year price increases. Comparing the first 11 months of 2018 to 2017, home prices are up 6 percent.

Even with declining sales, homes sold at record speed in November. They spent an average of 51 days on market, compared to the previous November low of 54 days set last year.

Closed Transactions
Of the 53 metro areas surveyed in November 2018, the overall average number of home sales is down 10.1 percent compared to October 2018, and down 6.9% compared to November 2017. Nine of the 53 metro areas experienced an increase in sales year-over-year, including Burlington, V.T., 8.8. percent, Albuquerque, N.M., 6.8 percent, New Orleans, 5.4 percent and Tampa, 5.1 percent.

Median Sales Price
In November 2018, the median of all 53 metro Median Sales Prices was $235,000, equivalent to October 2018, and up 4 percent from November 2017. Only two metro areas saw a year-over-year decrease in Median Sales Price: Honolulu, dropped 2 percent, and Birmingham, AL., dropped 0.7 percent. Three metro areas increased year-over-year by double-digit percentages: Boise, Idaho, 18.2 percent, Las Vegas, 12.2 percent, and Wichita, Kansas, 11.4 percent.

Days on Market
The average Days on Market for homes sold in November 2018 was 51, up three days from the average in October 2018, and down three days from the November 2017 average.

The metro areas with the fewest days on market were Omaha, at 26; San Francisco, at 31; Boise, ID, and Nashville, TN, both at 33; and at 34, Salt Lake City, UT, Denver, CO, and Las Vegas. The most days on market averages were in Augusta, Maine, at 110; Hartford, Conn., at 90; and at 78, Chicago and Miami.

Days on Market is the number of days between when a home is first listed in an MLS and a sales contract is signed.

Month’s Supply of Inventory Average of 53 metro areas
The number of homes for sale in November 2018 was down 7.1 percent from October 2018 and up 3 percent from November 2017. Based on the rate of home sales in November, the Month’s Supply of Inventory increased to 3.9, from 3.5 in October 2018, and increased compared to November 2017 at 3.6. A six-month supply indicates a market balanced equally between buyers and sellers.

Freddie Mac is integrating the asset and income assessment solution delivered through Loan Product Advisor, its automated underwriting system which provides a fast, intuitive way for lenders to verify loan application data with LendingPad, a solution from Wei Technology.

"LendingPad's expertise, combined with Loan Product Advisor's, superior underwriting capability, will help lenders provide a better mortgage lending experience for homebuyers," said Rick Lang, vice president for loan advisor strategy integration at Freddie Mac. "This innovation provides our clients with a much-needed competitive advantage, The Freddie Edge – that reduces drag in today's fast-paced housing market."

LendingPad's capabilities are immediately accessible through asset and income modeler, Freddie Mac's automated asset and income assessment feature, which is available in Loan Product Advisor. Options include access to vendors such as The Work Number and FormFree.

"LendingPad's capabilities should excite mortgage lenders who are looking to improve their loan process," said Wes Yuan, Managing Director at WEI Technology. "LendingPad and Freddie Mac are collaborating to provide their mutual clients with greater efficiency to originate more loans, lower origination costs and reduce processing time."