Ben Lane
- Managing Editor, New American Funding
Dallas
As seen in:
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HuffPost UK,
This is Money,
Finextra,
HousingWire,
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Dehai News
Managing Editor at @NewAmericanTeam. Man about town. All things to all people. I make with the good words.
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Articles by Ben Lane
Dehai News -- Unless there will be a Second American Revolution, the U.S. Government will keep getting crueler and crueler. What’s the limit, before there will be a revolution?
https://ericzuesse.substack.com/p/unless-there-will-be-a-second-american https://theduran.com/unless-there-will-be-a-second-american-revolution-the Unless there will be a Second American Revolution, the U.S. Government will keep getting crueler and crueler. What’s the limit, before there will be a revolution? 24 August 2026, by Eric Zuesse. (All of my recent articles can be seen here.) Things certainly will continue getting yet worse (for non-billionaires) than they already are.
World News -- Unless there will be a Second American Revolution, the U.S. Government will keep getting crueler and crueler. What’s the limit, before there will be a revolution?
https://ericzuesse.substack.com/p/unless-there-will-be-a-second-american https://theduran.com/unless-there-will-be-a-second-american-revolution-the Unless there will be a Second American Revolution, the U.S. Government will keep getting crueler and crueler. What’s the limit, before there will be a revolution? 24 August 2026, by Eric Zuesse. (All of my recent articles can be seen here.) Things certainly will continue getting yet worse (for non-billionaires) than they already are.
How to Use Your Home Equity to Buy Your Next Home
Homeowners It’s long been said that a person’s home is often the most valuable thing they will ever own. But many people may not know just how valuable their home is—and how it can help them to purchase their next one. Nationwide, home prices have risen by a “whopping 47%” since just before the pandemic began, according to a recent report from the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University. This means that homeowners have seen a substantial increase in home equity.
I read 199 books about leadership. Only these 5 actually helped
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The fintech industry needs more town planners (and chefs; and business owners; and school teachers…)
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ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OF AI-POWERED TOOLS IN CONTENT MARKETING
AI, nowadays, is dominating several fields of human life, including healthcare, automation, education, and business. People are now incorporating AI into their daily lives to perform routine jobs because of its potential for amazingly improved accuracy and productivity. The business sector is specifically enjoying the miracles of artificial intelligence (AI) to streamline marketing operations, particularly in content marketing.
Protecting your business through test automation
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PulteGroup accused of hiding shoddy homebuilding from buyers
PulteGroup and its subsidiary, Pulte Home Company, allegedly built homes in the state of Florida that were not to code and hid that information from homebuyers, according to the office of Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi. Bondi’s office announced last week that it reached a settlement with the Pulte companies after a two-year investigation found that Pulte allegedly failed to disclose to certain Florida buyers that some of its homes were being built in violation of applicable building codes.
Fast-growing local marketplace app letgo expands into real estate listings
If you’ve been anywhere near a TV in the last year or so, you’ve probably seen a commercial for letgo, an app that allows users to sell unwanted goods to other users who actually want that stuff. The app functions as an online marketplace, connecting sellers to buyers and vice versa, and since it launched in 2015, letgo has grown considerably.
HUD kills key tool used to enforce Obama fair housing rule
The Trump administration just took another significant step toward derailing a controversial fair housing rule issued by the Obama administration in 2015.
JPMorgan Chase officially reaches $53 million settlement for lending discrimination
Confirming reports that began to emerge last week, JPMorgan Chase officially reached a settlement with the Department of Justice over allegations that the bank’s brokers charged higher interest rates to minority borrowers than white borrowers in the run-up and during the financial crisis. Initial reports pegged the settlement amount at $55 million, but the actual settlement amount is slightly lower, checking in at $53 million.
Fannie Mae issues lender letter on self-employment income
Fannie Mae issued a lender letter on Wednesday with additional requirements for borrowers who are self-employed. “Income from a business that has been negatively impacted by changing conditions is not necessarily ineligible for use in qualifying the borrower,” the letter said.
Redfin begins mortgage lending in Arizona, Delaware, New Hampshire
Redfin, which restarted its home-buying business earlier this month after pausing in March, is now fully back in expansion mode. The online real estate brokerage announced Friday that it is expanding its mortgage lending operations into three new states. Redfin launched its mortgage lending operations in January 2017 and has consistently expanded its mortgage business since then. The company is now lending in Arizona, Delaware, and New Hampshire.
Brian Brooks takes over as Comptroller of the Currency, lays out plans for banking regulator
Just two months after joining the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency as chief operating officer and first deputy comptroller, Brian Brooks has now ascended to the top job at the banking regulator. On Friday, Brooks officially became the acting comptroller of the currency when Joseph Otting stepped down from the role.
[PULSE] Beware the housing confidence indices
One of the distinctive features of modern economies is constant measurement. A consequence of many interrelated factors, constant measurement is very much a product of capitalism. However, in the American economy today, we have gone far beyond simple measurement that’s connected to the main levers of economic planning and growth. This is why most indices should be understood to be very thin slices or a larger and often internally contradictory reality.
Amazon among companies helping apartment platform SmartRent raise $60 million
SmartRent, a smart home automation platform for property managers and renters, already featured some of the biggest names in multifamily real estate among its backers, but the company got a big boost last year when Amazon invested in the company. And now, all of those companies, Amazon included, have invested even more money in SmartRent, aiming to continue the company’s growth. SmartRent announced Wednesday that it raised $60 million in its Series C funding round.
Ben Lane starts a new adventure
A few months after I joined HousingWire in 2013, Ben Lane signed on as a mortgage reporter. The big news during that period was compliance with Dodd-Frank, including the Qualified Mortgage rule. A lot has changed in the industry and at HousingWire in the last six years, and on Friday, Ben is taking the next step in his career – going to work for New American Funding to help shape their content.
HSBC partners with RateReset to offer instant interest rate adjustments on ARMs
HSBC Bank USA, the U.S. arm of HSBC Group, launched a digital mortgage platform last year with the help of Roostify to help its customers obtain a new mortgage, but it looks like the bank isn’t done advancing its digital capabilities.
That would be really bad
As the nation seeks to move beyond the chaos of the coronavirus pandemic, predictions of what an economic resurrection will resemble has created something of an alphabet-based guessing game. For some experts, the future holds a V-shaped recovery with a sharp ascension rising from the swift plummet into near-wreckage. For others, a U-shaped recovery is in the cards, with the economy stuck in the flat doldrums before any upswing takes place.
Embrace Home Loans to partner with Ameriprise Financial
Embrace Home Loans is about to have more than two million new potential mortgage lending clients thanks to a new partnership with Ameriprise Financial. The companies announced Wednesday that they are partnering to allow Embrace to provide mortgages to Ameriprise’s two million wealth management clients.
Sprout Mortgage continues rolling out new non-QM loan offerings
It looks like Sprout Mortgage’s announcement last week that it was unveiling a new jumbo mortgage program was just the first step in a reversal of the lending pause the company took in March. Sprout announced Tuesday that it rolling out four new non-QM offerings.
Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac launch online resources for consumers
Fannie Mae has launched a new initiative to help homeowners and renters who have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. “Here to Help” is available as an online resource for hard-hit homeowners and renters. “Fannie Mae is committed to providing sustainable housing options to help keep people in their homes,” Fannie Mae Chief Executive Officer Hugh R. Frater said.
Online accessibility for housing dives deeper than ADA
You have just learned of a lawsuit filed against your company for several violations about something you never anticipated would be an issue – the design of your website. The suit alleges federal and state discrimination violations and seeks statutory damages, compensatory damages, punitive damages, and attorneys’ fees. It cites several laws being violated such as the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Fair Housing Act and state discrimination and tort laws.
CFPB makes it easier for mortgage servicers to digitize loss mitigation process amid pandemic
Mortgage servicers will soon be able to embrace a digital loss mitigation process without fear of punishment by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. The CFPB announced Friday that it is issuing a “No-Action Letter Template,” which will enable mortgage servicers that are “seeking to assist struggling borrowers to avoid foreclosure and engage in loss mitigation efforts” to apply for their own no-action letter.
Introducing HousingWire's 2020 Class of Rising Stars
This year’s 2020 Class of Rising Stars celebrates 50 young innovators moving the housing industry forward. Coming from all sectors of housing – mortgage, real estate, fintech, servicing and more, these up-and-coming leaders are blazing their own trail. The norm is no longer good enough. These Rising Stars are taking the lead on revolutionizing the housing industry.
Will smaller cities see a boom from the coronavirus?
After the Great Recession, the number of big-city residents boomed. Flush with jobs and thirsting for modern high-rises, young adults and families moved into dense metro areas with amenities at their doorsteps and strips of restaurants blocks away. But those walkable urban areas have become less affordable in recent years, and the quintessential dream of a single-family home, especially after the coronavirus-induced quarantine, may be multiplying.
As travel slows down, when will Airbnb owners recover?
As travel has been significantly minimized and less people are renting out Airbnb‘s, it leaves vacation rental owners in a bind, with some paying multiple mortgages. While Airbnb has mended some of its policies to accommodate the extenuating circumstances, are vacation homeowners protected with mortgage forbearance? Airbnb, which recently cut about 25% of its workforce due to COVID-19, has not spoken out on assistance for these homeowners.
Brace prepares servicing industry for disruption
Taken from HousingWire Magazine’s May issue, the startup profile on Brace looks at a company that is about to start creating disruptions in the housing space. With its sights set on the servicing industry, Brace recently closed a Series A funding round and is looking to bring automation and AI to servicing. Most Popular Articles
Appraisal technology reduces risk for appraisers and homebuyers in the midst of COVID-19
As the majority of the housing industry transitioned to working from home due to COVID-19 health concerns, many appraisers remained on the front lines. The Appraisal Institute and several other organizations rallied to deem appraisers essential workers so they would be exempt from stay-at-home orders, but that designation also put them in harm’s way.
CFPB data shows Americans were terrified about their finances as pandemic raged
Despite the efforts of the government over the last few months, there are still a great number of people confused about their financial relief options in the wake of the pandemic. Things have likely gotten at least a little better in the last few weeks as Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and the government itself have taken a more proactive stance on addressing issues involving people’s mortgages and other financial services.
What happens to real estate when COVID-19 busts state and local budgets?
As COVID-19 starts to loosen its grip on some of the nation’s coastal cities and begins a relentless march across the parts of the nation it hasn’t walloped yet, the rest of America is set to find out what happens to neighborhoods when the full force of the pandemic comes to town. When the virus sickens large numbers in a community, costly services from first responders spike as residents call for help, much like a natural disaster.
Summer is the new homebuying season
Spring has historically been dubbed “homebuying season,” but as the last few months have been shut down due to the COVID-19 pandemic, is summer the next best thing? The beginning of 2020 saw the strongest time for mortgage purchase applications, and around late February into early March, homebuyers were getting antsy to purchase. It seemed like spring homebuying season was starting early.
Christine Beckwith to speak at June's engage.marketing summit
In this year’s ultra-competitive and sometimes chaotic mortgage market, product and rates are just one part of winning business and expanding your customer base. It’s a motivated sales team, with defined goals, that ultimately grows market share. That’s the crux of Christine Beckwith’s sales coaching and why we’ve invited her to speak at next month’s virtual engage.marketing summit.
People movers: Orchard and Black Knight
Real estate company Orchard has hired Phil Felice as its chief revenue officer and Elijah Meerson as its chief technology officer. Felice has nearly 20 years of experience in the industry, most recently as the U.S. CEO for Purplebricks. Prior to joining Purplebricks, he was a vice president of sales for NRG as well as spending over a decade working in real estate where he served in leadership roles for Realogy, Altisource and Foxtons.
States Title raises $123 million to digitize real estate closings
States Title, which has quickly grown into one of the nation’s largest title insurance and settlement services companies, announced Thursday that it has raised $123 million to continue digitizing real estate closings. According to the company, its Series C capital raise was led by Greenspring Associates, a comprehensive venture capital investment platform with over $10 billion in assets under management.
Otting steps down after releasing Community Reinvestment Act reform
Just one day after unveiling sweeping reforms to the Community Reinvestment Act, Comptroller of the Currency Joseph Otting has stepped down from his role as one of the nation’s top banking regulators. On Wednesday, Otting’s OCC released its final rule on “strengthening and modernizing” the CRA, which requires banks to meet the credit needs of all communities they serve, including low- and moderate-income neighborhoods.
FHFA issues new rule on allowing GSEs to build capital
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac moved closer this week to ending their decade-plus-long stay in conservatorship when they announced that they are looking for financial advisors to assist in a stock offering that removes the companies from government control. But that’s not the only step the government-sponsored enterprises are taking this week towards exiting conservatorship.
Patty Arvielo to speak at June's virtual engage.marketing summit
With more than 30 years of mortgage industry experience, Patty Arvielo helms New American Funding‘s daily operations of more than 200 branches, 3,300 employees and a servicing portfolio of more than 131,000 loans for $32 billion. That operation has exponentially grown from the one Arvielo and her husband, Rick, founded 17 years ago. The duo has built New American Funding into a mortgage lending and servicing powerhouse that has landed the company on the Inc.
Spruce raises $29 million in Series B funding
Real estate tech company Spruce has raised $29 million in Series B funding led by Scale Venture Partners, with participation from Zigg Capital and Bessemer Venture Partners. The Series B funding will support the team’s expansion, accelerate the development of its proprietary technology and deepen integrations with client partners, Spruce said.
Here are two metros that offer both affordability and inventory
Homes listed for sale during the first quarter of 2020 were 8% more affordable than the same time in 2019, a new report from realtor.com and the National Association of Realtors said. But there are only two metros that offer both affordability and an adequate supply of listings, which have been historically low.
Another 2.4 million workers filed jobless claims
Another 2.4 million people filed jobless claims last week, bringing the number of Americans seeking unemployment benefits in the nine weeks since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic to 38.6 million. It was the lowest weekly level of claims since job losses began to spike in mid-March, and the seventh consecutive week of declines after reaching an all-time high of 6.87 million at the end of March, according to Labor Department data.
Mortgage delinquencies nearly double in April on COVID-19 shock
Mortgage delinquencies almost doubled in April as out-of-work Americans struggled to pay their bills during the COVID-19 pandemic. The U.S. delinquency rate rose to 6.45% from 3.39% in March, the largest monthly increase ever recorded, Black Knight said in a report on Thursday. It was almost triple the previous record gain in 2008, near the beginning of the financial crisis.
Mortgage rate drops to within 1 basis point of all-time low
The average U.S. rate for a 30-year fixed mortgage dropped to within one basis point of an all-time low this week, according to Freddie Mac. The rate fell to 3.24% from 3.28% last week, close to the 3.23% all-time low reached in April’s final week, according to the report. The low rates are spurring housing demand as states ease lockdown restrictions, said Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s chief economist.
April home sales take biggest hit in almost a decade
Existing home sales plunged 17.8% from March, the biggest drop since July 2010, as deals fell through in the midst of the worst public health crisis in more than a century. Sales fell to a seasonally adjusted 4.33 million annual pace, the slowest rate in a year and almost a million short of the previous month, the National Association of Realtors said in a report on Tuesday.
OCC going it alone on Community Reinvestment Act reform, with Otting reportedly set to step down
Joseph Otting has been the Comptroller of the Currency since November 2017, but if reports are to believed, Otting is set to leave the OCC as soon as this week. And in what could be his last official act as leader of one of the nation’s main banking regulators, Otting’s OCC is pressing forward alone with reforms to the Community Reinvestment Act, a federal anti-redlining law.
New York City's housing market struggles under lockdown with residential sales down 61% YOY
New York City is the U.S. epicenter of the coronavirus pandemic, and the local economy has been harshly impacted by the health crisis. But the city’s residential real estate market was facing problems before the pandemic hit town. According to the Real Estate Board of New York, the city’s total sales volume during the first quarter of this year fell 16% year-over-year from $10.5 billion to $8.7 billion.
Sprout Mortgage rolls out new jumbo mortgage program for loans up to $3 million
In the latest sign that the market for loans outside the Qualified Mortgage box is thawing, Sprout Mortgage announced Wednesday that it is rolling out a new jumbo mortgage program. Sprout was among a number of companies that froze their non-QM lending activities as the coronavirus was first starting to crush the U.S. economy. At the end of March, Sprout paused its lending activities. But the company began lending again in early May.
Could the coronavirus crisis lead to larger homes and office spaces?
A lot of interesting ideas are being floated about how the coronavirus crisis will affect our future habits and social patterns. Some that I have come across lately that relate to the housing market and real estate include the idea that prospective home buyers will be looking for larger homes to accommodate the possibilities of working from home and/or homeschooling.
Are mortgage rates about to fall below 3%?
Until about three months ago, it was basically unthinkable that interest rates would ever fall below their record low of 3.31%, which was set in November 2012. But then the coronavirus happened. And as the virus was wreaking havoc on the world and its economy, interest rates not only broke that record; they’ve since settled comfortably below the previous all-time record level and stayed under 3.3% for three straight weeks.
Housing starts plummet to a five-year low
Housing starts plummeted to a five-year low in April as builders paused activity amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Starts on both multifamily and single-family units dropped 30%, the biggest monthly decline in six decades of records, to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 891,000 in April, the lowest level since February 2015, the Commerce Department said in a report on Tuesday. The number of single-family houses started by builders fell 25% to an annual pace of 650,000 units in April.
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