Foreclosures | Mortgages | Financing
The housing market in Texas is as hot as the state’s temperature this summer as home prices and home sales continued to increase in the second quarter. In fact, the Texas Association of Realtors says this quarter demonstrates an all-time high for sales volume in the state. …read more
From:: Real Estate Wire
The results are in for the majority of the top mortgage originators in the industry. The earnings create a clear picture for how the market performed in the second quarter, along with what to expect in the third quarter. …read more
From:: Real Estate Wire
Shares of Etsy Inc. rocketed 17% to a more than 10-month high in afternoon trade Monday, after Citigroup issued a bullish note on the online crafts marketplace a day before it was scheduled to report second-quarter results. That would mark the second-biggest one-day gain since the stock went public on April 16, 2015. Volume was about 7.3 million shares, already nearly five times the full-day average. Citigroup analyst Mark Kelley started coverage of Etsy with a buy rating, and a stock price target of $14, which was 19% above current levels. Kelley said he believes current consensus estimates for Etsy’s seller services business “are far too conservative,” as the company has made steady progress expanding its take rate as sellers adopt the additive services products. “We view Etsy’s long-term targets as more than achievable, and expect to see upside to consensus numbers as we progress throughout the year and into 2018,” Kelley wrote in a note to clients. Etsy is expected to report after Tuesday’s closing bell a loss of 2 cents a share on revenue of $80.6 million. The stock has soared 34% year to date, while the S&P 500 has gained 6.2%.
Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.
From:: Stock Market News
Lyft Inc. said it will “evaluate” its partnership with Didi Chuxing, after the Chinese ride-hailing company said Monday that it would acquire Uber’s China operations. Lyft currently has a partnership with Didi, as well as two other ride-hailing companies, that extends the reach of the app globally. “We always believed Didi had a big advantage in China because of the regulatory environment. The recent policy changes are exactly why we did not invest in the region,” Alexandra LaManna, a spokesperson for Lyft, said in an email to MarketWatch. “Over the next few weeks, we will evaluate our partnership with Didi.” With Didi’s deal, Uber will also own a stake in Didi, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.
From:: Stock Market News
Gold futures logged a modest gain Monday as weaker-than-expected economic data were read by some investors as being tepid enough to give the Federal Reserve pause in raising benchmark interest rates as early as its next policy meeting in September. Lower rates for longer tend to be supportive for gold prices. December gold picked up $2.10, or 0.2%, to settle at $1,359.60 an ounce. Meanwhile, silver futures for September delivery booked their best settlement since July 2014, FactSet data show.
Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.
From:: Stock Market News
West Texas Intermediate crude-oil futures extended losses in early afternoon trade Monday, dropping below $40 a barrel for the first time since April. September WTI futures were off $1.61, or 3.9%, at $39.99 after trading as low as $39.86. Concerns about a global glut of crude and gasoline, as well as weaker demand as the U.S. summer driving season comes to a close, have contributed to a slump that saw oil futures fall 14% in July.
Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.
From:: Stock Market News
In an interview, the chief executive officer of FICO talked about how his company’s credit scoring model compares to some newer methods.
William Lansing, CEO of San Jose, California-based FICO, is confident that his company’s model will continue to dominate the market.
He commented about how valuable things like social media and income are in helping lenders to predict whether borrowers will repay them.
From:: Financing
Legislation has been passed by Congress that will make it easier to finance condominiums using government-insured home financing.
Before heading out for summer recess, the Senate passed H.R.3700, the Housing Opportunity Through Modernization Act of 2016.
The Senate’s vote came after the House of Representatives passed the legislation by a vote of 427-0 earlier in the congressional session.
From:: Financing
For the third consecutive year, Quicken Loans took the top spot in J.D. Power’s mortgage servicer customer satisfaction survey. Compared to last year, however, it didn’t come easy as competition heightened. …read more
From:: Real Estate Wire
While there was no change at the top of the list of best mortgage servicers, Ocwen Financial Corp.’s servicing unit landed at the bottom.
On a thousand-point scale, the average customer satisfaction score for the nation’s largest residential loan servicers was 755 for 2016.
Home-loan borrowers’ satisfaction with their mortgage servicers has improved compared to a year earlier, when the average score was 718.
From:: Financing