Month: May 2026

The Fed can’t fix tomato prices, up 40 percent in the last year due to tariffs and shipping prices, and that is tough on consumers and growers alike. If you think that times are tough for lenders, given the war in Iran, oil prices, inflation, and interest rates, try the flower biz. 1-800-Flowers saw revenue decline 11.6 percent in the quarter ending in March, posting a net loss of $100.1 million. The brand has shed market share among online flower shops, dropping to nine percent from 14.3…

Doctor: “Sir, I have some bad news, I’m afraid your DNA is backwards.” Me: “and?” If you don’t like bad news, skip this opening paragraph. If you want some reality, read on. First off, U.S. home foreclosures are accelerating: filings rose 26 percent year-over-year in Q1 2026, to roughly 119k, the highest in six years. It’s expensive to own a home! The last time they hit this level (early 2020), government relief programs and pandemic stimulus caused them to decline. As everyone in our biz…

Here’s something to ruminate on: “No one ever announces when it’s their first rodeo.” What is something that small and mid-sized lenders can’t offer? Chase rolled out a program for borrowers to earn 100,000 Chase Points. (Bilt and UWM rolled out something similar a while back.) But, nearly every lender can help borrowers with the cost of a mortgage, and STRATMOR’s current blog is “Pricing That Can Help Borrowers.” In addition, in the credit world two new automated features for the FICO Score…

How ‘bout this one: A firefighter went to the college graduation ceremony for a baby he helped deliver many years ago. Loan originators can be involved in many life events of their clients as well, as the months and years roll on, something that a software program can’t do. They’re also in a great position to explain the nuances of the summer home buying season to clients. They know that rates aren’t the only thing making homes unaffordable. The median home price rose from $274,900 in Q4 2019…

How about we start the week with some “actual intelligence” instead of “artificial intelligence”? I’ve never heard the terms empathy, wisdom, or experience applied to software, but good originators have all of those, and more, as well as a keen interest in their pool of potential borrowers. The gap between where rates are and where households “need them to be” is suppressing labor mobility, distorting retirement decisions, and reshaping expectations about generational wealth building: 56…

If you really think housing is in short supply, why are there “81 markets where home prices are falling”? Instead, let’s agree that there is an imbalance as all real estate is local. The Census Bureau’s 2025 Population and Housing Unit Estimates show continued U.S. population growth driven largely by strong international migration, with the national population reaching roughly 341.8 million as of July 1, 2025, up more than 3 percent from the 2020 Census base. Growth remained concentrated in…

I recently got on an airplane, and there were no other passengers! A flight attendant walked up and chittered, “You’ve got the whole plane to yourself! A large group that was going to a psychic’s convention all cancelled at the last minute.” Obviously i surived, and what you know matters. Wanna know the new buzz acronym? Residential Transition Loans (RTL): financing for properties in transition, including fix-and-flip, bridge, and rehab deals. Catch the wave… people always need to borrow…