While California girds its loins for an “atmospheric river and bomb cyclone”, readers should know that I sometimes ask myself, “Why can I remember the order of songs from an album 25 years ago, but I can’t remember why I went into the kitchen?” Yesterday I forgot that it was Ohio’s Union Home bought Michigan’s Amerifirst, not Guild. I apologize for the mistake… It’s all those “stable, multi-state, non-depository, residential lenders with strong management teams”… There certainly are a lot of rumors making the rounds. But also concrete news, about lenders and vendors are making the rounds, perhaps the latest being United Wholesale’s $37.35 credit report. Obviously this puts more pressure on the CRA world (as detailed in the Commentary a few weeks back). There will obviously be pressure on lenders to keep reigning in overhead. For example, the tendency allowing LOs to hang around in down markets is a management deficiency which many doubt will be corrected any time soon. “Hey, they know the system, so let’s keep trying to train them!” The management of lenders, and vendors with sales staff, are well aware that marginal producers do, in fact, cost something. (Today’s podcast is sponsored by MCT and its Hedge Advisory. Comprehensive capital markets software and services that empower secondary marketing performance. Today’s has an interview between two Robert Chrismans on the origination landscape as we enter 2023 and the intrinsic value of a mortgage company. Lender and Broker Software, Products, and Services