While technology has become an important channel for information among homebuyers, many still see real estate agents as smarter than any other resource.

Onity adds former Meta exec as director, Click n’ Close taps industry veteran as president while banks and credit unions boost their mortgage teams.

James was charged with one count of alleged bank fraud and one count of making false statements to a financial institution. The indictment made public on Thursday follows allegations from Trump administration officials that James engaged in mortgage fraud.

Markets Rocked by New Tariff Drama

Bonds were already having a decent day this morning with overnight market movers bringing yields in line with the lower end of the recent range. Mid-day drama caused massive selling in stocks which spilled over and made for an extension of the already-decent bond rally. The culprit? An unexpected tariff threat from Trump in response to… well… something (seriously, we’re not sure). Then, just minutes before the end of trading for the 3 day weekend, an official announcement (again, with cryptic references to untoward actions by China). Bonds managed to rally a bit more as stocks sank more, but there’s no telling how this will carry over on Tuesday. Tariffs haven’t been reliably beneficial for bonds, but they were beneficial today. 

Market Movement Recap

09:45 AM Overnight gains mostly holding.  MBS up 7 ticks (.22) and 10yr down 4bps at 4.10

11:26 AM Another wave of buying after tariff headlines.  10yr down 8bps at 4.06 and MBS up 10 ticks (.31).

02:17 PM best levels of the day. MBS up just over 3/8ths and 10yr down 9.2bps at 4.048

05:13 PM Even stronger at the close with 10yr down 11bps at 4.033 after new tariffs officially announced.  

The regulator recently nixed Obama and Biden-era guidance for the Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity and apparently reduced staff.

A lapse in the National Flood Insurance Program because of the US government shutdown threatens to snarl home sales in the nation’s riskiest floodplains and leave some homeowners without coverage in the middle of hurricane season.

Growth in multifamily and investment property mortgage originations, the highest risk segments, drove the 6% rise in the National Fraud Index, Cotality said.

Total mortgage origination volume is forecasted to barely eclipse $2 trillion by the end of the year for the first time since 2022, iEmergent said.

Federal Reserve Gov. Michael Barr said in a speech Thursday that he fears the gradual pace of price increases from tariffs being passed on to consumers may prolong the one-time inflationary effect of the tariffs to the point where it affects consumers’ inflation expectations.

Uneventful Day; MBS Underperform

It’s not uncommon to see MBS outperform their Treasury benchmarks in the run up to a round of weekly Treasury auctions only to underperform when the auction cycle wraps up. That underperformance (or rather, Treasury outperformance) was on full display today with MBS losing about a quarter point while 5yr notes lost about half as much. While bonds are slightly closer to the weaker end of the recent range, they’re still very much inside it.

Market Movement Recap

09:25 AM Moderately weaker so far with 5.0 coupons down 6 ticks (.19) and 10yr yields up 2.6bps at 4.143

11:45 AM flat since last update.  MBS down 6 ticks (.19) and 10yr up 1.9bps at 4.136

01:04 PM Slightly weaker bond auction = slightly weaker response.  MBS down 7 ticks (.22) and 10yr up 2.9bps at 4.146