Mar. 20: Secondary, appraisal, audit products; Freddie employee email news; Western Alliance data breach; thoughts on IMB share
“My wife just left me. She says life revolves around baseball and she's sick of it. I'm quite upset. We were together for 7 seasons.” Say hello to the spring equinox, that astronomical spring in the Northern Hemisphere that occurs when the sun crosses directly over the equator, resulting in nearly equal day and night lengths, and halfway between the day with the least amount of daylight and the day with the most. Rain or shine, the seasons proceed. Rain or shine, data breaches occur (see below). Rain or shine, lenders and vendors are interested in being acquired, acquiring, or merging with culturally similar organizations. This month’s STRATMOR piece is titled, “Mergers and Acquisitions Aren’t Going Away, and In Fact…” And rain or shine, the U.S. Federal Reserve is keeping an independent eye on the economy and making sure it is stable. Yesterday the “Fed” did… nothing. (More below in capital markets.) Vice Capital’s Chris Bennet will be on The Big Picture today at 3PM ET to discuss the Federal Reserve, the link between current and future yields, and why rates are where they are. (Today’s podcast can be found here and this week’s is sponsored by CoreLogic. Whether it’s using cash to purchase a home, debt consolidation, or a straight cash-out refinance, CoreLogic’s Precision Marketing’s data-driven insights pinpoint your best opportunities to retain and recapture your clients. Today’s has an interview with Simple Lending Financial’s Janine Cascio on her journey from breaking into the mortgage industry to founding her own company, reflecting on the challenges and triumphs along the way, and offering valuable advice for women looking to advance their careers and break barriers in the industry.)
Lender and broker products, software, & services
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As an innovator in the mortgage industry, A&D Mortgage is proud to have created the first-ever automated decision system for Non-QM loan products! It allows you to get instant eligibility approval and the required conditions for the current loan. Gain a competitive edge with instant approval! Learn more about the technology.
“Verus Mortgage Capital specializes in non-QM programs, helping lenders serve borrowers who fall outside of conventional loan qualifications, such as self-employed borrowers. Check out our latest blog which delves into how to approve them without standard income documentation. Since Verus’ inception in 2017, we have financed approximately $31.4 billion through 65 rated securitization transactions, further cementing our position as the predominant non-QM issuer. It’s no wonder lenders come to us for flexible financing alternatives like our Prime Ascent Plus Program which enables them to offer higher LTVs, competitive rates and expanded credit options. Think beyond conventional in 2025 and partner with the non-QM leader. Contact Jeff Schaefer, EVP of National Sales, for more information at 202-534-1821.”
Is Your Tech Partner There When You Need Them? Ever use technology where you can't get someone on the phone when you need help? It’s frustrating… But not the case with Usherpa. Usherpa’s platform is built specifically for mortgage professionals: easy to use, intuitive, and designed to simplify your marketing efforts. But what really sets Usherpa apart is their unmatched Live Support. When you have a question or need assistance, you can talk to a real person who is ready to help. No endless phone trees or waiting for days for an email reply. It’s a rare combination these days: cutting-edge technology backed by genuine, human connection. Usherpa helps streamline workflows, build stronger relationships, and close more loans, because great tech should come with great service. If you're looking for marketing technology that actually supports you, check out Usherpa.
Exceptional Sub-Servicing Exists at PLANET! Scale with compliant, cost-effective solutions, built to grow with you. Planet’s high-touch, personalized service for clients and borrowers is backed by proprietary technology, efficient processes, and strict compliance standards. Trust Planet’s experienced leadership team to elevate your subservicing experience. Learn more: 214-983-2288 or subservicing@planethomelending.com.
To attract and retain business in today’s evolving mortgage market, originators need scalable, forward-thinking technology. The new ICE Customer Acquisition solution combines speed, scalability, and precision with tools to enhance trust and customer loyalty. Seamlessly integrated into Encompass®, this powerful marketing and sales workflow is designed to elevate your lending experience and help you capture opportunities faster. Read the full announcement to learn how these innovative tools can help you increase leads, improve customer retention rates, and lower your cost of acquisition.
Cardinal Financial reduces moderate exceptions with ACES flexible Audit Technology® Cardinal needed a flexible, scalable platform that would allow them to automate audits, streamline compliance and improve reporting. “Our go-live experience with ACES was a breath of fresh air,” says Hillary Holloway, Cardinal Financials’ director of quality control. “We quickly saw the rewards of efficiency, with smoother workflows and faster processes right out of the gate. Overall, it was a stress-free launch that immediately delivered results." After replacing its manual QC process, Cardinal Financial was able to improve monitoring for regulatory requirements, increase collaboration between departments, reduce potential for human error, and create a culture of transparency and quality. “ACES runs smoothly, giving our team faster access with fewer tech headaches while keeping our sensitive data secure,” Holloway shares. “We now have full access to our QC data, eliminating our reliance on IT. " Read the full success story.
Service 1st, Covius’ national appraisal management solution, is excited to offer dedicated support for clients ordering through the ACES platform. Dante Petrella is now the dedicated ACES representative for Service 1st. He has been a part of the Service 1st team for more than six years and brings more than 25 years of experience in sales and client relations to this position. Dante is committed to exceptional service and plays a key role in ensuring the seamless integration of our solutions into client workflows, enhancing efficiency and accuracy. In addition to delivering field reviews through the ACES platform, Service 1st delivers a full range of residential and commercial valuation products that span the mortgage spectrum from origination through default. Our appraisal solutions are ideal for lenders looking to improve productivity, reduce costs and maintain the highest quality and compliance standards. To learn more about how Service 1st’s ACES platform support can benefit your business, contact Dante.
Is a data breach the same thing as a hack? And in other legal news…
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Western Alliance Bank is notifying roughly 22,000 individuals that their personal information was stolen from a third-party secure file transfer software. Western Alliance says the incident occurred in October of 2024, when a threat actor started exploiting an unknown vulnerability in the file transfer tool, gaining access to “a limited portion of Western Alliance’s systems” and stealing files from them.
In January, Western Alliance learned that data was compromised in the attack, and in February it determined that personal information was stolen, including names, Social Security numbers, dates of birth, driver’s license numbers, passport information, financial account numbers, and tax identification numbers.
The financial institution is providing potentially impacted individuals with one year of identity protection services. Western Alliance notified the Maine Attorney General’s Office that 21,899 individuals were affected by the data breach.
In a February filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Western Alliance said it became aware of the data breach after a threat actor published allegedly stolen information online, and said that the incident would not have a material impact on its financial condition or results of operations. Despite that, it didn’t take long for class action lawsuits to sprout: Federman & Sherwood, Strauss Borrelli PLLC, Migliaccio & Rathod LLP.
Brad Blumberg, the founder of Aster Key, which helps consumers and lenders avoid data breaches, weighed in. “A cyber breach has been disclosed by Western Alliance Bank despite the depository's explicit strategy to protect its data stated in an earlier article about its cyber security policy and importance.
“The breach at Western Alliance Bank, a lending institution with more than $80 billion in assets, should prompt IMBs, which often have far fewer resources, to reevaluate their cybersecurity strategies, ensuring they have robust defenses in place to protect member information and maintain trust. It's a stark reminder to mortgage lenders how imperative it is to secure sensitive customer data.
“Despite Western Alliance Bank's comprehensive information security program, which adheres to industry standards and frameworks, this incident highlights that even organizations with robust defenses are vulnerable to cyber threats. The exploitation of vulnerabilities in third-party software, as seen in this incident, emphasizes the necessity for financial institutions to establish third-party risk management protocols that can help identify and address potential security gaps before they are exploited.”
In other legal news, “A high-stakes mortgage servicing transfer in January set off alarm bells for Steve Stone, the former Marlin Mortgage Chief Operating Officer, who now claims he was punished for questioning the deal. Mr. Stone, former COO at Marlin Mortgage, alleges that the transfer did not financially benefit Voya Financial Management, the investor that owned the
MSR portfolio. The lawsuit claims the transfer was orchestrated to benefit Marlin Mortgage CEO Andrew Weber personally, allowing him to pocket millions through an undisclosed side deal. Not long after, Weber allegedly used those funds to purchase a 64-foot Viking yacht, aptly named 'JuJu.”
Greetings Freddie Mac Worker!
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True or false, fact or fiction, this is making the rounds, and came from a few sources, none of which will be named by me.
“The future of Freddie Mac is bright, and there will be significant opportunities for those who do a great job for our wonderful company! We truly appreciate the work that each and every one of you does to move our company forward, daily! This is a great American company, and it will be stronger and more successful than ever before.
“To that end, with our new board members, we will be looking for great people to step up and we will reward those who step up in the coming year. This means we will be reviewing compensation plans in 2025 and will be rewarding key people who have an open mind, who are focused on building, and who want to further their own careers.
“Because we want the best teamwork, engagement, and productivity, we want to discuss enhanced amenities and the return to office. By May 1st, employees are expected to resume a full-time in-office schedule five days a week. For the fully remote employees, each division head will assess your specific arrangements, and we will help transition into the office, if relevant for your specific role, by August 1st. Check with your specific division head for more details.
“We are also working on a number of enhanced amenities which we will share in the future! In the meantime, watch for information on HomeFront on how to sign up for special events during March and April for in-office employees.
“We are challenging ourselves to Make Home Possible for even more families - and do so responsibly and efficiently. We believe that rolling up our sleeves, working side-by-side is the best recipe for success. We're excited for so many of us to be together.”
Thought Leadership: opinion on “king of the hill”
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For over a decade, independent mortgage banks (IMBs) have dominated the lending space, but a major shift is brewing, according to Rich Swerbinsky in his latest piece for the Thought Leadership section of the Chrisman Commentary website. Banks are gearing up for a comeback. With potential regulatory rollbacks, a purchase-driven market playing to their strengths, and a resurgence in home construction, depository institutions are positioning themselves to reclaim lost market share. As mortgage rates ease and banks explore acquisitions and joint ventures, the question looms: will IMBs hold their ground with tech and innovation, or will banks leverage their deep pockets and customer relationships to take back the lead? Read on to see what’s next in the battle for mortgage market dominance.
Capital markets: yes, lack of Canadian travel will help our rates
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How has Gateway Correspondent Lending improved efficiency and profitability with MCT Marketplace? In MCT’s case study, Tom Bradley, Trader and Senior Correspondent Product & Pricing Analyst at Gateway Correspondent Lending, shares how leveraging powerful MCT Marketplace tools such as AutoBid and AutoShadow expanded its seller network and enhanced buyer efficiency. "It used to take me 10 minutes to submit a bid, now it only takes 10 seconds. I hit the button to review and can be done in 10 seconds. This makes it so much easier to confirm bids with the automation of the system," Mr. Bradley explains. Learn how Gateway Correspondent Lending automated manual processes to streamline workflow through the MCT Marketplace integration in this case study.
The mainstream press (and the financial markets) is interested in the cutback in Canadian tourism in the United States given the reaction to President Trump's trade imposition of tariffs and talk of turning their country into the 51st US state. Yes, Canadians not wanting to come to the United States is a thing that may dent the $20.5 billion that Canadian visitors usually spend in the US each year, the New York Times reports.
As expected, the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) kept interest rates unchanged, emphasizing increased uncertainty in the economic outlook. While projections now indicate weaker economic growth and a softening labor market moving forward, inflation expectations for the near term have risen slightly compared to the release of the last Summary of Economic Projections from December. The committee maintained its federal funds rate target for now but signaled concerns about slowing growth. A key policy adjustment was the decision to significantly slow the pace of quantitative tightening (QT) starting in April, cutting the monthly Treasury runoff from $25 billion to $5 billion while keeping the MBS cap at $35 billion. This move aims to ease liquidity strains in financial markets while maintaining a measured approach to monetary policy.
Despite tariff-related uncertainties, likely keeping the Fed cautious, cooling shelter costs and signs of labor market weakness could eventually push the central bank toward easing. If economic growth slows as expected, the FOMC may implement 75-basis points of rate cuts by the end of 2025. Government spending is also expected to contribute less to growth than in previous years, further shaping the Fed’s path forward. Meanwhile, Chairman Powell reiterated that the Fed is in no rush to change policy, maintaining a patient and data-driven stance amid shifting economic conditions. Internationally, the Bank of Japan was also out with its latest monetary policy decision. As expected, the central bank kept its policy rate unchanged at 0.50 percent through a unanimous vote.
Today has an active domestic economic calendar between data and Treasury supply. Before all of that, the Swiss National Bank cut rates, the Riksbank (Sweden) left rates steady, as did the Bank of England based on their latest monetary policy decision making and interpretations. Domestically, we have already received Q4 current account, jobless claims (223k, as expected; 1.892 million continuing), and Philly Fed manufacturing for March. Later today brings existing home sales for February, leading Indicators for February, Treasury details for next week’s month-end auctions consisting of 2-, 5-, and 7-year notes and 2-year FRN before auctioning $18 billion reopened 10-year TIPS, and Freddie Mac’s latest Primary Mortgage Market Survey. Today is also Class D 48 hours in the MBS sector. We begin the day with Agency MBS prices better by .125-.250 depending on coupon and maturity, the 2-year yielding 3.94, and the 10-year yielding 4.19 after closing yesterday at 4.26 percent.
After my recent prostate exam, the doctor left. Then the nurse came in.
As she shut the door, she whispered the three words no man wants to hear:
“Who was that?”
Visit www.robchrisman.com for more information on our industry partners, access archived commentaries, or to subscribe to the Daily Mortgage News and Commentary. If you’re interested, visit my periodic blog at the STRATMOR Group web site. This month’s piece is titled, “Mergers and Acquisitions Aren’t Going Away, and In Fact…” , “Natural Disasters and Economic Resilience.” The Commentary’s podcast is live and at any place you obtain your podcasts (like Apple or Spotify).
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