REI INK

Hard Money Lender Accelerates Past Major Milestone in Lending

  • by
  • Comment Off
  • 362 views

Ignite Funding, a hard money lender, crossed the $1 billion dollar mark in funding residential and commercial real estate loans. It was just last year that Ignite Funding announced the milestone of $750 million funded, which puts this new achievement under their belt at record pace. “If it were not for the loyalty of our investors and the ingenuity of our borrowers, Ignite Funding would not have had the opportunity to sprint past this milestone,” states Carrie Cook, the President of Ignite Funding. “It’s truly a symbiotic relationship between the two. Our borrowers continue to bring great real estate projects to the table, and our investors readily bridge the gap left by traditional lending, and then both parties get to reap the returns.” While this achievement might cause another company to shift into “cruise control”, Ignite Funding does not intend to ease up on the gas pedal. “We always have a finger on the pulse of both the real estate investment and the lending industries so that Ignite Funding is right in the thick of the competition,” affirms Ms. Cook. “We are not afraid to tackle the growing pains that stem from this necessity and to adapt as needed.” About Ignite FundingIgnite Funding is the conduit in connecting bankable borrowers with sophisticated investors seeking double-digit returns via real estate investment opportunities collateralized by Trust Deeds. If you are a developer in search of lending that aligns with your goals, Click Here to review our lending criteria and schedule a consultation with the Director of Underwriting.

Read More

HOMEOWNER EQUITY SURGES ACROSS U.S. DURING Q2

  • by
  • Comment Off
  • 473 views

Eight Times More Properties are Equity-Rich Across U.S. Than Seriously Underwater Portion of U.S. Homes Considered Equity-Rich Up to 34 Percent Seriously Underwater Properties Down to 4 percent ATTOM, curator of the nation’s premier property database, released its second-quarter 2021 U.S. Home Equity & Underwater Report, which shows that 34.4 percent of mortgaged residential properties in the United States were considered equity-rich in the second quarter, meaning that the combined estimated amount of loans secured by those properties was no more than 50 percent of their estimated market value. The portion of mortgaged homes that were equity-rich in the second quarter of 2021 – one in three – was up from 31.2 percent in the first quarter of 2021 and from 27.5 percent in the second quarter of 2020. The report also shows that just 4.1 percent of mortgaged homes, or one in 24, were considered seriously underwater in the second quarter of 2021, with a combined estimated balance of loans secured by the property at least 25 percent more than the property’s estimated market value. That was down from 5.2 percent of all U.S. properties with a mortgage in the prior quarter and 6.2 percent, or one 16 properties, a year ago. Across the country, 48 states saw equity-rich levels increase and seriously underwater percentages decrease from the first quarter to the second quarter 2021. Every state saw equity-rich levels rise and the seriously underwater portion drop compared to the second quarter of 2020. The improvements at both ends of the equity scale were the largest in two years and provided yet another sign that the United States housing market has resisted damage to the broader economy brought about by the Coronavirus pandemic that hit early last year. As the economy has gradually recovered in 2021, the housing market boom has continued for a 10th straight year, with gains across most measures. Equity increases in the second quarter came as the median home prices nationwide rose 11 percent, quarterly, and 22 percent year over year, during the months running from April through June of 2021. Median values rose at least 15 percent annually in a majority of metro-area markets around the country. Those ongoing price runups have boosted equity because the increases have widened the gap between what homeowners owe on their mortgages and the value of their properties. Prices have continued rising over the past year as rock-bottom interest rates and a desire to escape virus-prone areas have led to a bubble of home buyers largely untainted by the pandemic’s financial damage. Those buyers have been chasing a declining supply of properties for sale throughout the past year, resulting in elevated demand and soaring values. “The huge home-price jumps over the past year that helped millions of sellers earn big profits also kicked in big-time during the second quarter for other owners who saw their typical equity improve more than at any time in the last two years. Instead of the virus pandemic harming homeowners, it’s helped create conditions that have boosted the balance sheets of households all across the country,” said Todd Teta, chief product officer with ATTOM. “There are still a lot of questions hanging over the near future of the U.S. housing market, with some connected to how well the economy keeps recovering from the pandemic, and some not. We’ll keep watching those closely, though for now, there are few assets that keep on giving so much as homeownership.” Western and northeastern states show biggest improvement in equity-rich share of homes Nine of the 10 states with the biggest gains in the share of equity-rich homes from the first quarter of 2021 to the second quarter of 2021 were in the West and Northeast. States with the biggest increases included Arizona, where the portion of mortgaged homes considered equity-rich rose from 16.3 percent in the first quarter of 2021 to 39.7 percent in the second quarter, Massachusetts (up from 25.3 percent to 41.7 percent), New Hampshire (up from 20.4 percent to 36.1 percent), Rhode Island (up from 21 percent to 36.4 percent) and Delaware (up from 10.5 percent to 25.2 percent). States where the share of equity-rich homes decreased or went up the least from first to the second quarter of this year were Maryland (down from 23.5 percent to 23.2 percent), West Virginia (remained at 19.8 percent), Nebraska (up slightly from 27 percent to 27.1 percent), Alaska (up slightly from 22.5 percent to 22.9 percent) and Montana (up slightly from 40.4 percent to 40.8 percent). South and West show largest declines in underwater properties Seven of the 10 states with the biggest declines from the first quarter of 2021 to the second quarter of 2021 in the percentage of mortgaged homes considered seriously underwater were in the South and West. They included Tennessee (share of mortgaged homes seriously underwater down from 10.1 percent to 4.4 percent), Alabama (down from 12.1 percent to 6.6 percent), Delaware (down from 9.9 percent to 4.6 percent), Alaska (down from 7 percent to 3.1 percent) and Nebraska (down from 8.6 percent to 5 percent). States where the percentage of seriously underwater homes rose or declined the least from the first to the second quarter of 2021 were West Virginia (up from 10.3 percent to 11.7 percent), New Hampshire (up from 2.4 percent to 2.5 percent), Hawaii (down from 2.5 percent to 2.3 percent), New York (down from 3.3 percent to 3.1 percent) and Utah (down from 2.2 percent to 1.9 percent). Largest shares of equity-rich homes still in West; smallest in Midwest and South The West again had far higher levels of equity-rich properties than other regions in the second quarter of 2021. Seven of the top eight states with the highest levels in the second quarter were in the West, led by Idaho (54.2 percent of mortgaged homes were equity-rich), California (53.8 percent), Vermont (53.3 percent), Washington (49.4 percent) and Utah (45.5 percent). Fourteen of the 15 states with the lowest percentages of equity-rich properties in the

Read More

ASA Disappointed with Continued Exclusion of Appraisal Profession from Ongoing Federal Agency Efforts on Valuation Bias

  • by
  • Comment Off
  • 336 views

The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) held a virtual event looking at bias issues surrounding the home valuation process. Notably, this event was held without any participants from the appraisal profession at the table. This marks the second event of its kind that has excluded appraisers or their representatives from these important conversations. On June 15th, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) held their own valuation bias event, absent any meaningful input from the appraisal profession. This mirrors the ongoing process, led by HUD, by which the PAVE Interagency Task Force has been working. Rather than providing public notice of planned meetings and seeking stakeholder input, the Task Force meets privately and without offering meaningful opportunity for public input. The exclusion of the appraisal profession from these events sends the message – intentional or not – that the input of appraisers is unwanted by those seeking to address issues relating to valuation bias. We believe that our track record on this issue demonstrates not only a willingness to engage on the question of valuation bias, but a commitment to doing the earnest work necessary to understand and overcome these challenges: ASA provided significant input to and ongoing support for HR 2553, the Real Estate Valuation Fairness and Improvement Act of 2021. This bill provides a comprehensive framework that addresses the housing finance system holistically and provides all stakeholders an opportunity to offer input; ASA has also worked on the state level to improve legislation designed to provide consumers meaningful disclosure around their rights if they feel they have been subject to discrimination, as well as ensuring that appraisers are provided the tools and resources necessary to understand the nuances of topics such as unconscious bias; ASA has testified before, and is on a Task Force with, the City of Philadelphia to investigate what role localities can play in understanding and addressing valuation bias issue; ASA, along with its partners in the appraisal profession, developed and presented a free session discussing unconscious bias and its possible effects in the appraisal process; and, Since 2019, ASA has engaged its own Diversity and Inclusion Task Force, looking at ways to improve representation across the whole of the appraisal profession. ASA has also served on the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Special Committee of the Appraisal Foundation, and supports the broad-based efforts undertaken by the Foundation in this area. As was reiterated in a recent letter to HUD, ASA (as well as the whole of the appraisal profession) continues to be willing to engage meaningfully on the topic of valuation bias. All we ask is for agencies such as HUD and CFPB to provide the opportunity. American Society of AppraisersThe American Society of Appraisers is a world renowned and respected international organization devoted to the appraisal profession. As the oldest and only major appraisal organization representing all appraisal specialists, ASA is dedicated to providing the highest possible standards in all areas of ethics, professionalism, education and designation criteria. For more information about the American Society of Appraisers, the ASA designation program for appraisers or the Society’s free “Find an Appraiser” Referral System, visit www.appraisers.org or call (800) 272-8258.

Read More

Realtor.com® Investor Report: Top Markets Where Investors Are Impacting the Inventory Crunch

  • by
  • Comment Off
  • 382 views

– Nationally, investors took more inventory off the market than they contributed in April; their purchases represented 5.7% of all home sales – Among the 50 largest U.S. metros, investors made the biggest contributions to inventory levels in: Atlanta, Dallas, Baltimore, Los Angeles and San Francisco – In April, investors took away the most inventory in: Phoenix, Charlotte, Miami, Tampa and Chicago Despite the common perception that investors are always in competition with everyday buyers, new findings from the Realtor.com® Investor Report shows that isn’t always the case. According to the data, investors are exacerbating the inventory shortage in 31 of the top 50 U.S. markets, but in roughly 19 markets they are actually helping to replenish the number of homes for sale. Realtor.com® analyzed U.S. deed records from January 2000-April 2021 to determine the number of investor sales versus purchases in the 50 largest U.S. markets. In this report, areas where investors are contributing inventory refers to places where investors are selling more homes than they are buying. Places where investors are taking away inventory are locales where investors are buying more homes than they sell. “Today’s buyers are facing a tough market and data shows they aren’t just competing with each other. With deep pockets and more flexibility, investors can be daunting competition for the typical homebuyer. Right now, data shows investors are buying more homes than they are selling, and while they get a lot of attention in today’s market, it’s worth remembering that they can also contribute to inventory levels,” said Realtor.com® Chief Economist Danielle Hale. “Whether a market is appealing to investors depends on a variety of factors, including how local home prices compare to rents. When home prices are rising and rents are more stagnant, investors are more likely to sell off properties and contribute inventory. On the other hand, the higher rents are compared to home prices the more attractive the market is to investors looking to buy homes and convert them into rental properties.” Investors help buyers in big metros with limited homes for sale In April, investors added to the number of homes on the market in 19 of the 50 largest U.S. metros, with Atlanta (+399 homes), Dallas (+239 homes), Baltimore (+188 homes), Los Angeles (+112 homes) and San Francisco (+93 homes) seeing the biggest contributions. Compared to the markets where investors took away inventory in April, these metros tend to be bigger, with fewer homes for sale and higher listing prices. Compared to nationwide inventory declines in April (-53%), the top 10 markets where investors are contributing saw a smaller drop, at an average -44% during the same timeframe. However, some of these metros saw even bigger inventory gaps from last year, including the two markets where investors contributed the most inventory in April: Atlanta (-63.4%) and Dallas (-69.7%). At an average population size of 5.5 million, these markets also encompass some of the nation’s biggest tech hubs, such as San Francisco and San Jose. Home to some of the most expensive real estate in the U.S., these metros had an average median listing price of $668,000 in April, well above the national median price of $375,000. Hale added, “High home prices, slower rent growth, and uncertainty over the future of work in these markets are likely causing investors to reevaluate their property portfolios in these areas. And with homes still selling quickly, even in these metros, an investor deciding to sell can look forward to being able to reposition their dollars elsewhere in a very short period of time.” Investors are snatching up homes in smaller markets with higher inventory levels Investors took away inventory in 31 of the largest U.S. markets, led by Phoenix (-429 homes), Charlotte, N.C. (-287 homes), Miami (-256 homes), Tampa (-224 homes) and Chicago (-221 homes). Compared to the markets where investors helped buyers, these metros are smaller and less crowded, with more available home listings relative to all households, lower home prices, and relatively higher rental price growth. While average home prices are more affordable in these top markets, rental prices grew at a faster year-over-year pace on average (+4.6%) than in top markets with more investor sales (+0.1%) in April. In Tampa, where the $327,000 median listing price was below the national average of $375,000 in April, rents grew 4.5 times faster than the national rate, up 12.4% year-over-year.   The markets where investors are competing with homebuyers and taking away inventory tend to offer the perfect storm of factors for converting homes into rental properties. These markets have relatively more homes available, at 3.7 properties for every 1,000 residences versus 2.8 in markets where investors are adding to inventory. While these metros have experienced more rapid year-over-year inventory declines in April (-57%), rapid rent price gains keep calculations favorable for buying which means that until rent trends change, investors are likely to be homebuyer foes, not friends. “Getting ahead in today’s market is tough, especially when you are contending with professional investors,” said Lexie Holbert, home and living expert at Realtor.com®. “Setting up price alerts on Realtor.com® is a really helpful trick for getting ahead of the competition. When a home that meets your parameters hits the market, you’ll get a notification so you can get in and try to make an offer.” About Realtor.com®Realtor.com® makes buying, selling, renting and living in homes easier and more rewarding for everyone. Realtor.com® pioneered the world of digital real estate more than 20 years ago, and today through its website and mobile apps is a trusted source for the information, tools and professional expertise that help people move confidently through every step of their home journey. Using proprietary data science and machine learning technology, Realtor.com® pairs buyers and sellers with local agents in their market, helping take the guesswork out of buying and selling a home. For professionals, Realtor.com® is a trusted provider of consumer connections and branding solutions that help them succeed in today’s on-demand world. Realtor.com® is operated by News Corp [Nasdaq: NWS, NWSA] [ASX: NWS, NWSLV] subsidiary Move, Inc. under a perpetual license from the National Association of REALTORS®. For more information, visit Realtor.com®.

Read More

Mr. Cooper Group Announces Two Executive Appointments

  • by
  • Comment Off
  • 520 views

Executive Team Expanded to Drive Portfolio Growth and Customer Experience Enhancements Mr. Cooper Group Inc. (NASDAQ: COOP) announced two additions to the executive leadership team as the company focuses on becoming the largest home loan company in the country, with a customer-centric culture and best-in-class digital tools. Shawn Stone was named Executive Vice President and Chief Revenue Officer and will focus on the company’s accelerated growth strategy, exploring new delivery channels and finding more ways to leverage Mr. Cooper’s technologies to deliver experiences that delight customers. In his role, Stone will also lead the Mr. Cooper Originations business. “Shawn is joining our team at a pivotal moment as we position Mr. Cooper to become the largest home loan company in our industry, and I am excited for his vision and strategic leadership to ensure we capitalize on our strengths and find more opportunities in the market,” said Jay Bray, Chairman and CEO of Mr. Cooper Group. “I am pleased to welcome Shawn back to Mr. Cooper Group and believe he is a natural fit into our incredible culture.” Stone joins Mr. Cooper from Renovate America where he served as the company’s Chief Executive Officer and a member of its Board of Directors. Previously, Stone was Chief Executive Officer and executive founder of Global Mortgage Capital where he started a nationwide independent mortgage banking business that included multiple mortgage origination, servicing and financing companies. Prior to that, Stone was an executive leader at Mr. Cooper, where he worked for 18 years serving in leadership roles in originations, servicing, capital markets, finance and as founder and President of Xome. Additionally, Jay Jones was promoted to Executive Vice President, leading the company’s industry leading Servicing business. Jones joined Mr. Cooper in July 2019, most recently serving as Senior Vice President of Servicing. He has more than 25 years of experience in the mortgage industry and has held various key leadership roles, strategically guiding mortgage servicers through the ever-changing industry landscape. Before joining Mr. Cooper, Jones served as Executive Vice President and Chief Strategy Officer for Celink and as Executive Vice President at CIT Bank, where he led the Residential Servicing Operations Division. “I am thrilled for Jay’s promotion and greatly value his perspective as part of our leadership team. Jay is a staunch advocate of keeping the dream of homeownership alive for our customers, and his leadership and expertise will be key as we continue to focus on growing the portfolio while delivering greater value and a better experience for customers,” said Bray. As members of the executive leadership team, Stone and Jones both report to Chris Marshall, Vice Chairman, President and Chief Financial Officer of Mr. Cooper Group. “Mr. Cooper remains focused on transforming the mortgage experience, and Shawn and Jay have the operational strength and challenger mindset to rally our team behind this mission,” said Marshall. “We are grateful to have them on the team as we move forward with our plans to accelerate profitable growth while delighting our customers.” About Mr. Cooper Group Mr. Cooper Group Inc. (NASDAQ: COOP) provides quality servicing, origination and transaction-based services related principally to single-family residences throughout the United States with operations under its primary brands: Mr. Cooper® and Xome®. Mr. Cooper is one of the largest home loan servicers in the country focused on delivering a variety of servicing and lending products, services and technologies. Xome provides technology and data enhanced solutions to homebuyers, home sellers, real estate agents and mortgage companies.

Read More

RentSpree Raises $8 Million in Series A Funding to Enhance Collaboration Between Renters, Agents, and Owners

  • by
  • Comment Off
  • 622 views

Funding validates recent progress and significant market opportunity, enabling RentSpree to create the first platform allowing multiple parties to cooperate on a rental transaction. RentSpree raises $8 million in Series A funding. The funding round was led by 645 Ventures and additional investors including Green Visor Capital, and Vesta Ventures. RentSpree will use the investment to enhance its API-first integration capabilities and to provide the definitive platform for renters, agents, and owners to complete all pieces of their rental journey. RentSpree, the fastest growing rental transaction software company, announced that it closed $8 million in Series A funding led by 645 Ventures. New investors Green Visor Capital and Vesta Ventures also participated in the funding round. “Today’s announcement is a huge milestone for RentSpree– one that validates our vision to create efficient, value-add solutions for all parties involved,” says Michael Lucarelli, co-founder and CEO of RentSpree. “We are most excited to further streamline the rental process while helping individuals achieve long-term goals that extend through the rental journey and beyond.” Founded in 2016, RentSpree has experienced impressive growth. After previously raising $2.3M in venture funding, RentSpree now services over 600,000 users and has nearly quadrupled monthly renters since closing its Seed funding round. More than just a tenant screening company, RentSpree covers every step of the rental process.  The platform is also the first of its kind to support the collaboration of multiple parties because renters typically interact with a combination of real estate agents, landlords, and property managers to secure a single rental.  RentSpree facilitates these interactions by providing universal rental applications, report sharing, a rental forms library, digital signatures, renters insurance, and much more. With this investment, RentSpree will add valuable new features like payments, agent branding, and contact management to further reduce rental friction.  Special emphasis will be placed on building predictive analytics to ensure that individuals are guided seamlessly to the right features at the right time. “The real estate industry has seen significant growth in rental activity over the past decade, and RentSpree is on the forefront of providing software that deploys quickly and streamlines crucial operations that haven’t seen innovation in a very long time,” says Nnamdi Okike, Co-Founder and General Partner of 645 Ventures. “With the growth RentSpree has experienced in its user and customer base, as well as in their product offerings, we’re excited to see them become the leader in providing world-class renter management software.” RentSpree employs an integration-first approach and has already deployed its standardized rental process with a who’s-who list of real estate players, including the California Association of REALTORS®, Bright MLS, California Regional MLS, Florida Realtors®, and many more. For more information about RentSpree, visit www.rentspree.com/press About RentSpree: Founded in 2016, RentSpree is an award-winning rental software known in all 50 states for its easy-to-use tenant screening process, renter management, partnership program, and rental screening API. In just five years, RentSpree has grown its database by partnering with some of the most trusted names in real estate.

Read More