Tag: AP

Mortgage and Finance News: (PLANO, Texas) Optimal Blue today announced a new capability in its industry-leading product, pricing and eligibility (PPE) engine that fully automates the process for a lock desk user to execute best efforts locks directly with participating investors via API. By eliminating the last remaining manual step in the locking life cycle, Optimal Blue is delivering innovations and enhancements that will help significantly increase a lender's efficiency and profitability.

Mortgage and Finance News: (ATLANTA, Ga.) Down Payment Resource (DPR), the housing industry authority on homebuyer assistance program data and solutions, today released its Q2 2025 Homeownership Program Index (HPI) report. The report finds 45 new programs launched in Q2, traditionally the busiest homebuying season, bringing the total number of available programs to 2,554 - a new record - and the number of program providers to 1,340.

Mortgage and Finance News: (TROY, Mich.) Class Valuation, a leading real estate appraisal management company (AMC), announced today that its Elite Appraiser Panel, a groundbreaking program, has doubled in size during the past 12 months and is setting new standards for professional excellence. Class Valuation's exclusive, invitation-only Elite Panel now comprises hundreds of high-performing appraisers nationwide.

Mortgage and Finance News: (SAN DIEGO, Calif.) Amid one of the mortgage industry's most prolonged stretches of cost pressure and market uncertainty, the latest Pulse of the Network survey from The Mortgage Collaborative (TMC) reports that lenders are responding with creativity and nimble thinking, anchored by a clear commitment to long-term resilience.

Mortgage and Finance News: (SEATTLE, Wash.) Friday Harbor, an AI-powered platform that helps loan officers assemble complete and compliant loan files in real time, announced two strategic hires today: Chris Simms has joined as head of strategic partnerships, and Gregory Buehler has joined as founding product manager. They bring over 35 years of combined experience in mortgage lending, product strategy and technology innovation.

Mortgage and Finance News: (WASHINGTON, D.C.) Arsha Jones, founder and CEO of Capital City, announced today the launch of the Capital City Micro-Grant, a $5,000 grant aimed at helping local, retail-ready entrepreneurs scale their consumer product businesses. The grant will be awarded during the Shop Made Makers Summit, a multi-day entrepreneurship experience taking place August 19-21 in Washington, D.C.

Mortgage and Finance News: (SALT LAKE CITY, Utah) Mobility Market Intelligence (MMI), the original pioneer in mortgage market intelligence, today announced the launch of ChatMMI™ - the industry's first conversational AI interface built specifically for lenders, recruiters, and mortgage professionals.

Mortgage and Finance News: (NEW YORK, N.Y.) Klingenstein Fields Advisors (KF Advisors) is proud to announce its recognition as one of the top Registered Investment Advisors (RIAs) in Financial Advisor Magazine's 2025 Survey & Ranking, released on July 11, 2025, for firms managing $1.0 billion or more in assets.

Mortgage and Finance News: (MONTREAL, Quebec) Chief Investment Officer of COTE 100 and respected financial columnist Philippe Le Blanc has officially released "Advantage Equities: Invest Between the Lines and Win" (ISBN: 978-0228818939; released June 2025 by Tellwell Publishing), an insightful new book offering investors a fresh, accessible perspective on the world of stock market investing.

Mortgage and Finance News: (GARDEN GROVE, Calif.) Informative Research Data Solutions, a division of Informative Research and a leading provider of data-powered borrower intelligence and analytics tools for the financial services industry, announced today that its executive vice president, Shannon Santos, has been named a 2025 Mortgage Professional America (MPA) Elite Woman Award recipient.

Mortgage and Finance News: (ATLANTA, Ga.) Strategic Benefits Advisors, Inc. (SBA) today released a practical summary of the employee benefits provisions contained in the newly enacted One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBB), signed into law by President Trump on July 4, 2025. While the legislation spans a wide range of tax and policy changes, SBA's summary highlights the bill's most significant impacts on employer-sponsored retirement plans, health and welfare benefits and payroll operations.

Mortgage and Finance News: (LAKE ZURICH, Ill.) Dovenmuehle Mortgage, Inc., a leading mortgage subservicer, today announced the successful completion of its 2024 Service Organization Control (SOC) 1® Type 2 and SOC 2® Type 2 audits. These independent audits, conducted by the public accounting and business advisory firm Plante Moran, PLLC, affirm Dovenmuehle's adherence to the highest standards for internal controls, data security, and operational effectiveness.

Mortgage and Finance News: (KOKOMO, Ind.) CFD Companies' efforts to support adviser marketing were validated recently when CFD affiliated financial adviser Rachael Camp was a featured panelist at the 2025 Jolt! Conference. Social media marketing remains prohibited at many financial services firms, but CFD has calculated that the extra regulatory burdens are a part of providing exceptional service to CFD affiliated financial professionals.

Mortgage and Finance News: (SEATTLE, Wash.) Friday Harbor, an AI-powered platform that helps loan officers assemble complete and compliant loan files in real time, today announced the availability of open APIs, giving lenders and vendors a new level of flexibility in how they integrate Friday Harbor into their mortgage tech stack.

Mortgage and Finance News: (ATLANTA, Ga.) Down Payment Resource (DPR), the housing industry's leading technology for connecting homebuyers with homebuyer assistance programs, today announced a strategic partnership with FirstHome IQ, a nonprofit empowering the next generation of homeowners through modern, accessible financial education and tools for industry partners.

Mortgage and Finance News: (GARDEN GROVE, Calif.) Informative Research (IR), a premier technology provider delivering data-driven credit and verification solutions to the lending community, today announced the availability of Halcyon's IRS tax transcript service within the IR Verification Platform. This enhancement expands Informative Research's suite of verification of income and employment (VOI/E) options.

Mortgage and Finance News: (SEATTLE, Wash.) How would you like to take home 100% of your paycheck and never pay income tax again? To learn more, get a free copy of the new book by Rich Germaine, "Tax Revolution 2.0, Let's Get Rid of the Income Tax."

Mortgage and Finance News: (LAS VEGAS, Nev.) Michael Leonetti, a well-known entertainer and master chef was wrongfully arrested, convicted and jailed for a crime he did not commit. It took him 12 years in jail to prove his innocence. His book details and exposes all court documents confirming it was a huge cover-up by the courts, lawyers, detectives and a prison warden.

Mortgage and Finance News: (SALT LAKE CITY, Utah) Mobility Market Intelligence (MMI), the industry's sole provider of a unified mortgage technology solution, today announced a series of major platform enhancements and strategic product upgrades delivered in Q2 2025. These developments reinforce MMI's leadership as the only cohesive system delivering market intelligence, predictive borrower alerts, conversation-driven CRM, and a homeowner engagement platform in one high-impact solution.

Mortgage and Finance News: (ADDISON, Texas) Click n' Close, a multi-state mortgage lender, today announced it has been honored for the second year in a row as a 2025 Top Wholesale Lender Champion by the United States Department of Agriculture. This recognition underscores Click n' Close's continued commitment to fostering homeownership and supporting community development through innovative lending programs.

Mortgage and Finance News: (SAN DIEGO, Calif.) Twenty-five executive leaders from The Mortgage Collaborative (TMC) have been identified as holding current leadership positions in their respective state Mortgage Bankers Associations (MBAs), showcasing a growing alignment between grassroots industry advocacy and national operational collaboration.

Mortgage and Finance News: (SALT LAKE CITY, Utah and ATLANTA, Ga.) Arcasa, a provider of solar-integrated mortgage solutions, and Down Payment Resource, the housing industry's leading technology for connecting homebuyers with homebuyer assistance programs, today announced that Arcasa's Energy-Smart DPA program is now listed nationwide in Down Payment Resource's DPA Directory. Energy-Smart DPA combines a market-rate home loan with energy-efficient upgrades, giving homebuyers a single, streamlined path to both homeownership and long-term utility savings.

Mortgage and Finance News: (DENVER, Colo.) ACES Quality Management® (ACES), the leading provider of enterprise quality management and control software for the financial services industry, today announced the promotion of two internal compliance leaders: Amanda Phillips to general counsel and executive vice president of compliance, and Savannah Prout to associate vice president of compliance.

Mortgage and Finance News: (PLANO, Texas) Optimal Blue today released its June 2025 Market Advantage mortgage data report showing total lock volume rose 1.95% month-over-month (MoM), driven by increased refinance activity. Refinance share climbed from 16% to 18% of all locks as rate-and-term refinances jumped 17.4% MoM and 18.4% year-over-year (YoY). Cash-out refinances rose 8.1% from May and nearly 28% YoY.

Mortgage and Finance News: (SEATTLE, Wash.) It's been 250 years since the first tax revolution. Media Arts Institute, a Seattle-based media company, has just released a new book, "Tax Revolution 2.0, Let's Get Rid of the Income Tax" (ISBN: 979-8288643385; paper) by media consultant and researcher Rich Germaine.

Mortgage and Finance News: (CLEVELAND, Ohio) Top mortgage industry webcast The Big Picture, broadcast live every Thursday at 3 p.m. ET, has unveiled its July guest lineup featuring five impressive leaders who will explore the power of analytics, interpret public policy signals, unpack the barriers to home ownership and deliver pragmatic capital markets perspective. Co-hosted by mortgage business consultant and executive coach Rich Swerbinsky and capital markets authority Rob Chrisman, author of the widely read Chrisman Commentary newsletter, the webcast delivers timely, thought-provoking conversations with mortgage professionals, innovators and thought leaders.

Mortgage and Finance News: (JACKSONVILLE, Fla.) Dark Matter Technologies (Dark Matter®), an innovative leader in mortgage technology, today announced it has established an integration with Uniform Collateral Data Portal® (UCDP®), a single portal jointly maintained by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (the GSEs). This expansion positions Dark Matter as an early adopter of the technology needed to support the Uniform Appraisal Dataset (UAD) 3.6 and Forms Redesign initiative.

Mortgage and Finance News: (NEW YORK CITY, N.Y.) Argyle, a service provider automating income and employment verifications for some of the largest lenders and tenant screening platforms in the United States, today announced the availability of verification of assets powered by Mastercard's open finance technology. The expanded offering enables lenders to confirm borrowers' balances, cash-to-close and cash-flow history alongside income and employment.

Mortgage and Finance News: (SALT LAKE CITY, Utah) MMI (Mobility Market Intelligence), the sole provider of a unified mortgage technology solution for the lending and real estate finance industry, proudly announces that Kortney Lane-Schafers, Vice President of Growth & Client Advocacy, has been recognized as a 2025 Most Powerful Woman in Fintech by PROGRESS in Lending.

Mortgage and Finance News: (TROY, Mich.) Class Valuation, a leading real estate appraisal management company (AMC), announced today the launch of Class Valuation Analysis (CVA), a next-generation appraisal review solution engineered to bring greater transparency, compliance and confidence to residential property valuations.