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Originating (1418)

Ellie Reports Earnings Rose to $116M in Q4

Ellie Mae reported revenues for the fourth quarter of 2018 of $116.0 million, compared to $112.9 million for the fourth quarter of 2017. Net income for the fourth quarter of 2018 was $0.1 million, or $0.00 per share, compared to $9.9 million, or $0.28 per diluted share, for the fourth quarter of 2017. Net income… Read more...

Fixed-Rate Mortgages Achieve 12-Month Low

Fixed-rate mortgages have fallen to their lowest levels since early 2018, according to the Primary Mortgage Market Survey from Freddie Mac. “The combination of cooling inflation and slower global economic growth led mortgage rates to drift down to the lowest levels in a year,” said Sam Khater, chief economist for Freddie. “While housing activity has… Read more...

Bodnar: Bad News Could Lead to Good News

Bill Bodnar from Mortgage Market Guide discusses the catalysts driving the mortgage market. This week the biggest news was the decline, 1.2 percent, in retail sales for December, and a significant decline, 3.9 percent in internet sales. Equity and bond markets were “spooked by the numbers,” yet the result could bode well for originators and… Read more...

Operator of Mortgage Fraud Sent to Prison for Over 7 Years

Prakashumar "Kash" Bhakta was sentenced for operating a mortgage fraud scheme throughout Southern California and the Inland Empire that preyed on homeowners facing foreclosure, Xavier Becerra, attorney general for California announced. [caption id="attachment_9983" align="alignleft" width="244"] Xavier Becerra[/caption] Bhakta was sentenced to seven years and eight months in state prison. Restitution will be ordered in the… Read more...

7 Ways to Optimize Referral Sources for Loan Officers

By Ben Smidt [caption id="attachment_9966" align="alignright" width="179"] Ben Smidt[/caption] Being a loan officer is about being savvy and open to new ways of increasing your referral sources. We all know the typical referral sources for loan officers — real estate professionals, educational institutions, financial planners, builders and so on. But how do loan officers effectively… Read more...

Mortgage Applications Declined Last Week

Mortgage applications decreased 3.7 percent from one week earlier, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending Feb. 8, 2019. The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, decreased 3.7 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier. On an unadjusted basis,… Read more...

New Indices Target Consumers, Originators with Price Transparency

Optimal Blue has created Optimal Blue Mortgage Market Indices to provide consumers and mortgage professionals with greater visibility into key drivers of mortgage pricing. OBMMI was designed with the aim of providing an unprecedented level of daily insight into mortgage transactions. Based on actual locked rates with consumers across more than 30 percent of mortgage… Read more...

Ellie Mae to be Acquired By Thoma Bravo for $3.7B

Ellie Mae has entered into a definitive agreement to be acquired by Thoma Bravo LLC, a private equity investment firm, in a cash transaction that values Ellie Mae at around $3.7 billion. Under the terms of the agreement, Ellie Mae shareholders will receive $99.00 in cash per share. The price per share represents a 47… Read more...

Three Habits of Successful Lead Generators

By Pat Sherlock As everyone in the mortgage banking industry knows, loan origination is a hard job. The emotional roller coaster that originators go through on a daily basis is not for the faint of heart. Today, in our more difficult marketplace, this is especially true. [adbutler zone_id="326325"] [adbutler zone_id="326327"] [caption id="attachment_9789" align="alignleft" width="290"] Pat… Read more...

Marketing Plans Use the 'Sphere' As Their Foundation

The term “sphere” might be the most overused term in sales and marketing literature. For some, the sphere is represented by one’s immediate friends, but for others it is someone’s previous customers. A sphere is a compendium of someone’s life, and includes their background, contacts, experiences, interests and more. In reality, your sphere includes these… Read more...

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