*BONUS CONTENT - Listen to this week's newsletter summary with additional market insights!
đš Click the video above đ to hear Mortgage Maker AI Founder/CEO Shawn Brown's mortgage market overview and Mortgage Minute newsletter recap commentary.
Your 5-Minute Mortgage Power Play
No time? No problem. This weekâs Mortgage Minute is packed with fast, actionable insights to keep you ahead. Because in this market, speed wins.
Weâre breaking down key policy shifts, rate movements, and a Pipeline Save that proves a single phone call can be the difference between closing a deal and losing it.
Ready to get what you need in less than five minutes? Letâs go.
Washington Stirs the Housing Pot
Our friends in Washington, D.C., are back at it again: tweaking policies, eyeing tax breaks, and reshuffling regulations. The good news? Some of these moves could work in your favor.
Signs show the administration is putting greater focus on the 10-year Treasury yield, signaling an effort to manage long-term borrowing costs. A step in the right direction, but we shouldnât expect miracles â as Treasury yields are influenced by many other factors.
Tariffs could impact construction costs, but investors seem cautiously optimistic, viewing them as more of a negotiating tactic than the start of all-out price wars. Although âAll-Out Price Warsâ has the potential for an incredible reality show. Have your agent call us.
And while the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has been under intense scrutiny under the new administration, to paraphrase Mark Twain, âreports of its demise have been greatly exaggerated.â Killing it off entirely would require an act of Congress â and we all know how fast that happens.
This is good news for borrowers, as it will help keep lenders from expanding costs too rapidly, even in a volatile environment.
Mortgage professionals who stay ahead of the game and help borrowers make sense of the firehose of news will be the ones closing deals, while everyone else waits to see what happens next. Which one are you?
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It all started simply enough. Another closing on its way to another happy borrower. Smooth sailing in the final hours of a beautiful deal. That is, until $150,000 vanished.
A borrower was set to close on their dream home, everything was running like clockwork, and then their down payment wired to escrow never showed up.
Panic set in.
A frantic search began.
The buyer swore they followed the wire instructions exactly.
Turns out, they had â but the instructions were fake.
Theyâd fallen victim to email compromise fraud, where hackers intercept wire instructions, swap in fraudulent account details, and leave borrowers unknowingly wiring funds straight into a scammerâs hands. Once the money goes, recovering it is next to impossible.
This is a true story. At The Mortgage Minute, weâve unfortunately heard these stories more than once.
But luckily for this weekâs Pipeline Save, this is only a hypothetical, because in this case we had a loan officer who was proactive, constantly looking out for their borrower (and their deal).
From day one, the loan officer hammered home the importance of verifying wire details directly with escrow over the phone before sending a dime. The borrower hesitated on having to go through the extra hoop, just wanting to get it over with through the email that was sent.
Luckily they didnât!
This small precaution saved them from disaster, because when the borrower did relent and called escrow, they found out the wire instructions had been altered! The fraud was caught before it was too late, and the funds were properly wired.
Moral of the story? Fraud education is no longer optional. You must assume every borrower you talk to, no matter how informed and up-to-date on the inner workings of the mortgage process they may seem, donât fully understand the extent of the risks.
A simple conversation and a few reminders along the way could be the difference between a smooth closing and financial ruin.
Market Sentiment & Economic Calendar
Last week we continued to see some positive trendlines. For this upcoming week, rate movement is anticipated to be largely tied to the job market. The Friday employment report should be one of the key drivers. Hereâs whatâs on deck:
What to Watch:
Monday, March 3:
ISM Manufacturing (February) Manufacturing activity has been on a rocky road, and this report will reveal whether the sector is stabilizing or slowing further. A weak reading could suggest economic cooling, which tends to ease rate pressures. A surprise rebound, on the other hand, could give the Fed more reason to keep rates higher for longer.
Wednesday, March 5:
ADP Jobs (February) The ADP private payroll report gives an early read on job market strength before the official government numbers on Friday. If hiring remains robust, expect the Fed to stay cautious on rate cuts.
Thursday, March 6:
Jobless Claims Weekly jobless claims have remained stubbornly low, indicating continued labor market tightness. If claims start ticking up, it could suggest an economic slowdown, which might provide some relief for mortgage rates.
Friday, March 7:
Nonfarm Payrolls & Unemployment (February), Fed Chair Speech These are the reports of the week to watch. Strong job growth and rising wages will likely push rates higher, as the Fed remains focused on inflation risks tied to employment. If we see signs of cooling in the job market, rates may continue to ease.
To cap off the week, Fed Chairman Powell is slated to speak at the U.S. Monetary Policy Forum in New York. Investors will be watching his words closely.
Even though weâve seen some breaks, these rates remain at multi-year highs. Any unexpected strength in job or wage data could push them higher. Analysts have hinted at seeing clues of a softening, so any indication that the data may be more positive than anticipated could raise rates.
The numbers will tell the story, but the best loan officers arenât just reacting â theyâre anticipating. Keep an eye on the data, get ahead of client concerns, and donât let the market make moves before you do.
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