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- Boom or Doom?
Boom or Doom?
By Jeff Walton & Kelly Guest
Table of Contents
In an arena where good news can mean bad news, some are nervous about last week’s jobs numbers and what it may mean for mortgage rates and the summer market. HousingWire’s Logan Mohtashami makes a great case that “mortgage demand has remained resilient,” and has a hilarious LinkedIn post warning against getting sucked into doom and gloom. The market is pricing in a rate hike by the end of the year, but Bill Bodnar reminds us that the new Fed Chair insists that "economic growth is not inflationary,” in his latest Master the Markets segment.
CHATTER
Jobs Outperformed Expectations: U.S. BLS
Total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 172,000 in May, and the unemployment rate was unchanged at 4.3%.
Job gains occurred in leisure and hospitality, local government, and health care. Employment in financial activities declined.
Big Help for Veterans
MBA Applauds VA Partial Claim Solution
VA approves option that can allow delinquent VA borrowers to bring their mortgages current while avoiding payment increases. The “partial claim” option basically turns the missed payments into a subordinate lien that is paid off when the home is sold, mortgage is paid or refinanced. The difference from prior proposal was that the earlier version would have increased monthly mortgage payments by as much as 15%.
Fannie Goes Crypto
Better & Coinbase Announce GSE Backing
Better Home & Finance Holding Company and Coinbase announced the funding of the first Fannie Mae-backed mortgage backed by Bitcoin in the US - available to qualified borrowers nationwide by Summer 2026.
Initially supporting Bitcoin and USDC, the product allows borrowers to pledge digital assets as collateral, enabling them to secure a mortgage without liquidating their holdings. The companies plan to expand support to additional digital assets as the market matures.
Buffet’s $8.5B Bet
Berkshire Hathaway Buys a Builder: $8.5B Vote of Confidence in Housing
Berkshire Hathaway bought Taylor Morrison, at a time when one article describes housing data as “weak.”
Referral Reckoning? 2 Lawmakers Urge FTC to Investigate RE Referrals - HW
Accusations that online sites are steering without disclosure (“Contact Agent” buttons), claiming consumers may think they’re being directed to a listing agent vs. a random agent that buys leads
Allege that lender steering without disclosure may be occurring
The Big Pitch: Rocket Launches Contest for Tech Ideas
RocketPro wants to know what tech innovations brokers want. Contest awards $100K to the winner and company commits to build the idea and make it part of the wholesale channel process. Contest invites brokers to advise on not what tech to buy, but what problems they want solved.
Harshly Worded Letter: UWM Calls Out TWO Harbors Board
UWM published an open letter to TWO stockholders, reaffirms offer of $12.50/share and had some additional choice words:
“Your Board is relying on delay tactics that it hopes will wear down stockholders into accepting a less valuable transaction, even though UWMC’s superior proposal has been and continues to be on the table. This is the opposite of a value-maximizing process for TWO stockholders. We continue to urge all TWO stockholders to stand firm against the egregious conduct of this Board, vote AGAINST the CCM transaction – in line with the recommendations of ISS, Glass Lewis, and Egan-Jones – and to continue to demand good faith engagement with UWMC.”
$47.8M Message
Jury Says Broker Wronged, Big Award: HW
Jury awarded $47.8M to broker who spent a year working for defendants and was cut out of commission on $2.8M property he found for them. They told him they weren’t interested and then used a family member as broker. The court hasn’t issued final judgment yet; case is believed to be precedent-setting for enforcement of buyer-broker agreements.
Unjust Rewards? Bilt Blew It - HW
The rewards program that lets customers earn points for paying their mortgage and rent via their card didn’t always get the payments in on time
Bilt blames it on its transition from Wells Fargo
CFPB overseeing compensation to affected customers
MOVING & SHAKING
SynergyOne to merge with APM, Steve Majerus will be president - HW
Lennar promoted Jim Parker to COO and named David Grove EVP of Home Building.
loanDepot promoted Joseph Grassi to Chief Legal and Risk Officer.
First Federal Bank to sell TPO division to Mortgage Forward.
FICO named Eric Lapin VP/Head of Strategy & Market Intelligence for scores business.
FHA Commissioner Frank Cassidy steps down after leave of absence. - NMN
MARKET/INDUSTRY
Mortgage Rates Decrease to 6.48%: Freddie 6-4-26
The 30-year FRM decreased to 6.48% this week. With mortgage rates in the mid-6% range and income growth outpacing home price growth, housing affordability is marginally improving.
Mortgage Applications Decreased 2.5% from One Week Earlier: MBA Weekly Survey for the week ending 5-29-26. This week’s results include an adjustment for the Memorial Day holiday.
The Market Composite Index decreased 2.5% on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier. On an unadjusted basis, the Index decreased 13% compared with the previous week.
The Refinance Index decreased 2% from the previous week and was 20% higher than the same week one year ago.
The seasonally adjusted Purchase Index decreased 3% from one week earlier. The unadjusted Purchase Index decreased 14% compared with the previous week and was 7 percent higher than the same week one year ago.
“The prospect of easing energy prices given the evolving situation in the Middle East brought mortgage rates slightly lower last week. The retreat in rates, however, did not lead to an increase in mortgage applications. Purchase applications remained ahead of 2025’s pace but were at its slowest weekly pace since April, and refinance activity was at its weakest since last June.” - Joel Kan, CMB, MBA’s Vice President and Deputy Chief Economist
More Mortgage Misunderstanding
What They Don’t Know Can Cost Them: 2026 Wells Fargo Home Lending Quiz
Conducted by Ipsos March 5-13, 2012 respondents. Only 1 person got 100% correct.
Just 25% of respondents knew when to apply for a mortgage.
Nearly 90% of respondents didn’t understand what’s involved in closing costs (the largest blind spot in the quiz).
88% of respondents were not clear on the first steps to take when beginning the homebuying process.
80% of respondents would make a critical mistake when submitting a competitive offer on a home, such as sharing a pre-approval letter for the maximum approval amount with a seller.
“This quiz wasn’t about passing or failing. It was about helping people see where they might be vulnerable—and giving them the confidence that comes from being truly prepared.” – Serhat Oztop, WF Head of Home Lending
Slow Go: ATTOM Data’s Q1 2026 U.S. Residential Property Mortgage Origination Report
Lending activity slowed as persistently high home prices and elevated mortgage rates continued to weigh on buyer demand.
Purchase loan originations dropped 19% from the previous quarter to 581,261.
Down Payments Dropping: Redfin
The typical U.S. homebuyer’s down payment fell to $64,000 in March, down 1.5% year over year.
In percentage terms, the typical down payment was 15%, down from 16.1% last year.
Not a Big Leap: Unemployment Tied to Foreclosures - ATTOM
Q1 2026 Housing Impact Report shows the markets facing the greatest risk also struggled with high unemployment and some of the highest foreclosure rates in the country. Of the 50 riskiest counties, 12 were in Florida, nine in California, and five each in Illinois and New Jersey.
The national median home price was $360,000, with ownership costs consuming 30.3% of the typical worker’s annual wages.
The national unemployment rate was 4.4 percent in February, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Nationwide, 3.2 percent of homes were considered seriously underwater.