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Technology-backed real estate platform Realpha is expanding into Texas, the latest move in its attempt to establish end-to-end home buying services across the country. Already active in Florida, Realpha rolled out its platform to the Lone Star State through an agreement with national brokerage Continental Real Estate Group, allowing it to build a customer base in markets that have seen a spike in buyer interest this decade.     "This is an exciting next step in Realpha's national expansion," said CEO Mike Logozzo in a press release. "Texas is a high-volume, high-potential market that aligns perfectly with our integrated business model."The current broker partnership being used in Texas differs from Realpha's current strategy in Florida, allowing it to quickly move in and scale up to engage in real estate transactions. While Realpha employs brokers in Florida, the company also touts the capabilities of its artificial intelligence-backed purchase tools to automate the home buying process and remove the cost of agent commissions for sales transactions in the Sunshine State. "We aim to bring real value to home buyers by combining technology-driven convenience with cost savings, and Texas is just the beginning," Logozzo added. The latest announcement comes in an active period of growth for Realpha, which has multiple headquarters located in the Eastern U.S. Among its acquisition deals over the past several months are mergers with two mortgage brokerages, including Texas-based Be My Neighbor, an originator active in the state since 2018. The loan brokering services give the company the opportunity to keep Texas buyers in its mortgage pipeline, potentially serving them through to closing.The state reported more than 323,000 home sales transactions in 2024, according to data from Redfin. The median sales price came in at $347,000, with purchase volume totaling over $112 billion.Realpha followed up its Be My Neighbor merger with another deal to acquire California-based mortgage firm GTG Financial earlier this year. A late-2024 acquisition of USRealty Brokerage Solutions also laid the groundwork that paves the way for Realpha to obtain more than 30 state real estate licenses.Realpha's merger-and-acquisition strategy follows similar game plans employed this year by some mortgage lenders, namely Rocket and Lower, to build out their businesses into one-stop shops that can attract a home buyer and retain them as borrowers. Differentiating itself from those companies, Realpha has turned to mortgage brokers to grow lending operations, rather than originating loans in its own name.The company's current growth comes at the same time that  it is making several major executive appointments in 2025, including the promotion of Logozzo to CEO in early June. Prior to ascending to the top leadership post, Logozzo jointly held the roles of president and chief operating officer.  With Logozzo's promotion, former CEO and founder Giri Devanur moved into the position of executive chairman.  "With the foundation firmly in place, now is the right time to evolve our leadership," Devanur said at the time of Logozzo's promotion. "Mike has consistently demonstrated the operational expertise and strategic insight needed to execute at scale. I have great confidence in his ability to lead reAlpha into its next chapter." Also joining the company this year was Cristol Ripol, who took over as chief marketing officer. Prior to joining Realpha, she held the same title at technology firm Landed, which helps organizations establish down-payment assistance homeownership programs. Other C-suite moves at Realpha earlier in 2025 include appointments of a new chief financial officer and a chief crypto officer.

U.S. Home Equity Fund I, a real estate investment fund managed by Nada Asset Management, has purchased 132 home equity agreements from an affiliate in an over $10 million transaction.Nada launched the fund in February of this year, with the aim of creating a diverse portfolio of HEAs, also referred to as home equity investment contracts. This is the fund's first transaction.Nada started in 2021 and has originated more than 250 home equity agreements comprising over $115 million in value with its active portfolio delivering realized payoffs with a weighted average internal rate of return of 17% since inception, the company said.What are home equity agreement contracts?In a typical home equity agreement, the homeowner receives an upfront payment for a share in the property's future value. It is not a loan, unlike a closed-end second lien or a home equity line of credit.But the growing industry is facing legal challenges, including from the Massachusetts Attorney General's lawsuit against Hometap filed in February.On the other hand, Hometap was among the first of the home equity investment companies to go to the securitization market, putting out a rated transaction last June. Both DBRS Morningstar and Kroll Bond Rating Agency have methodologies in place to rate this securitization type. At the end of May, Point came out with a DBRS Morningstar-rated issuanceNada is looking at the same endgame for these assets."Our goal is to build up our portfolio and then utilize the securitization market for our pool of assets," said Jesse Stein, Nada's chief investment officer.What makes home equity agreements attractive for investors?What is attracting the demand from institutional investors for home equity investment agreements is what is going on in the macro economic environment."This product, the way that it's structured, provides significant downside protection to an investor, but at the same time, because it is an equity investment, it does deliver equity type returns," Stein said. "So the risk reward paradigm is pretty attractive compared to other types of real estate debt or equity products."This is why institutional demand for the asset class is growing quickly, he continued.Nada fund activities going forwardFuture purchases from the affiliate will be made on an ongoing basis as money comes into the fund, Stein said. It will only acquire assets from Nada. The fund owns all of the assets, and investors will own a limited partnership interest in the fund.Nada currently operates in 14 states, but the initial package consists of agreements from five: Texas, California, Florida, Arizona and Colorado.An important characteristic is that the combined lien-to-value ratio (between any loans and Nada's lien on the future value) is 51% for this portfolio, meaning the homeowner has retained a significant amount of equity, Stein pointed out. Metrics that measure tappable home equity for lending purposes set the bar at an 80% loan-to-value ratio.

A "perfect storm" is paving the way for growth in home equity investment contracts, with originations and secondary market activity both on the upswing for the emerging asset class, industry leaders said this week.  Tailwinds behind the product gives reason for optimism, according to Mark Ginsberg, an expert in securitized products originations at Barclays Investment Bank. "Rates remain elevated. Equity in homes keeps growing. Homeowners need a way to access that. There's some channels available to everybody. There's way more demand moving around from homeowners than institutional capital is ready to meet. That's just a great perfect storm," he said at a Morningstar DBRS home equity investment panel in New York on Wednesday.HEI products, sometimes referred to as shared-appreciation agreements, offer homeowners access to a share of their property value through a contract with their originator, typically with no monthly payments required. Interest does not accrue as they would in a home equity loan, making the products attractive to some property owners and others who may not qualify for traditional lending. Instead, payment of an agreed-upon equity share, factoring in accrued value, becomes due at the end of the contract term or when the owner vacates. While the agreements have seen their share of negative publicity over the past 12 months, consumer interest hasn't waned, Ginsberg added. Volume should double or triple in 2025 compared to last year when originations came in at approximately $1.5 billion by Ginsberg's estimates."A lot of the originators expect to do more than a billion this year," he said. Within secondary markets, interest is also increasing as more investors become aware of the product, with currently more demand for it than supply. Investors in securitized HEI products has regularly consisted of a close-to-equal share among hedge funds, insurance carriers and money managers.   "Volume is going up, and the pipeline is very robust," said Morningstar senior vice president Derek Moran, who oversees ratings for U.S. mortgage-backed securities.The agency has rated six deals so far this year, outpacing 2024's level over the same period.A primary difference between current activity and previous interest levels is the number of participants in deals, "really sort of exploded," Ginsberg said in reference to how investor sentiment has shifted. "There was a time when it took a lot of effort to basically get a deal done," the Barclays  executive remarked.What are current secondary market challenges?With HEI products still relatively new to the market, the issuer base is still attempting to become fully knowledgeable about them, the panel noted. "There's unique tax consequences associated with it. There's a lot of different pieces that you need to get comfortable with to underwrite," said Tim Carr, chief investment officer at Saluda Grade. Along with trying to understand regulations and perform necessary due diligence, the contracts themselves require more scrutiny than what many might be accustomed to."Every contract is slightly different. Everyone's originating something slightly different. It's not like a mortgage. You know exactly what a mortgage is," Carr continued. "Every one has different nuances. You have to pick your horse, or you have to look at all the horses and underwrite each one and figure out which one you want to buy. I think that's been some of the hurdles."An investment product that is still too new to offer a long look back at performance history also makes gauging risk difficult."I think it's a hybrid between reverse mortgages and second liens," said Craig Sedaka, portfolio manager at Libremax, in explaining the closest comparable products. "On the bond side, you are in a market that's developing," Sedaka added but noted that investors could be compensated well by taking on risk.

The Senate on Thursday unanimously passed bipartisan legislation to rein in trigger leads.That follows the House Financial Services Committee's unanimous approval of  the Homebuyers Privacy Protection Act, an amendment to the Fair Credit Reporting Act, earlier in the week.The mortgage industry now awaits as lawmakers work to reconcile minor differences between the House and Senate versions of the bill before a final vote and a potential signing by President Donald Trump.Bob Broeksmit, CEO of the Mortgage Bankers Association, applauded the momentum building around getting the bill passed. "We commend Senators Jack Reed (D-RI) and Bill Hagerty (R-TN), as well as the bill's dozens of bipartisan cosponsors, for their continued leadership on this issue – a top MBA advocacy priority," he wrote in a statement Thursday evening. "MBA looks forward to working with the sponsors and House and Senate leadership to reconcile the slight differences in the two bills so that one bill can be passed in both chambers and signed into law as quickly as possible." Brendan Mckay, head of the Broker Action Coalition, wrote in a LinkedIn post Thursday that the Senate passing the bill is a "big step" and that it is time to "push this across the finish line." Similar efforts gained traction late last year but fell short of passage.Amid the buzz, North Carolina Attorney General Jeff Jackson and 42 other attorneys general sent a letter to Congress on June 9 urging the passage of legislation to protect consumers from "invasive mortgage credit trigger leads, which blast consumers with unwanted robocalls and texts after they apply for a mortgage.""These barrages of robocalls and texts are a huge nuisance to North Carolinians buying a house and getting a mortgage," wrote Attorney General Jackson in a press release. "Robocallers shouldn't have unrestricted access to your personal information or the right to solicit you whenever they want. We're asking Congress for help in cracking down on this."According to the Mortgage Bankers Association, the House and Senate versions of the bill are nearly identical, with the exception of a minor addition in the House bill referencing a study.Both bills would curb credit reporting agencies' ability to furnish trigger leads to third parties, unless they certify that the consumer has explicitly consented to the solicitations. Exceptions are also made for the borrower's original mortgage lender or current servicer, and for banks and credit unions where borrowers have depository accounts. Currently, credit reporting agencies are permitted to resell consumers' information under the  Fair Credit Reporting Act, as long as callers make a "firm offer of credit". The Rose/Torres bill seeks to narrow the instances in which a company can reach out to a consumer. 

Bloomberg News A federal judge rejected the Trump administration's effort to undo a redlining settlement between the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and a Chicago mortgage lender whose CEO made comments on a talk-radio show that a court found discouraged potential Black homebuyers from applying for home loans.On Thursday, District Court Judge Franklin U. Valderrama, wrote in a 15-page ruling that the Trump administration's assertion that the CFPB pursued a redlining case "because it disliked Townstone's speech," was both "breathtaking," and "unpersuasive."The case centered on whether Barry Sturner, Townstone's CEO, had discouraged prospective Black applicants from applying for mortgage loans, in violation of the Equal Credit Opportunity Act and Regulation B — which prohibit creditors from discriminating on the basis of sex, race, color, religion, national origin, age or marital status.Valderrama, a Trump appointee, rejected the CFPB and Townstones's joint motion, filed in March with the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, to set aside a $105,000 judgment and dismiss the redlining case with prejudice. Instead, the judge sided with 14 nonprofit groups focused on fair housing and consumer protection that opposed the motion to vacate that settlement, finding that dismissing the case based on the current agency leadership's view of a prior agency leadership's decisions would unravel scores of legal decisions with every election. "Granting the Motion would erode public confidence in the finality of judgments," Valderrama wrote. "It would set a precedent suggesting that a new administration could seek to vacate or otherwise nullify the voluntary resolution of a case between a prior administration (or the same administration, but under different agency leadership) and a private party merely because its leadership thought the original litigation unwise or improperly motivated. That is a Pandora's box the Court refuses to open."The CFPB did not respond to a request for comment. The agency, led by acting CFPB Director Russell Vought, is expected to file a motion for reconsideration, legal experts said. "We're obviously disappointed by the judge's decision," said Richard Horn, co-managing partner at Garris Horn LLP and a former CFPB senior counsel and special advisor, who worked on the case.  Sturner said in an email that he was "obviously disappointed," and hoped that Vought would release more documents in the case "so the public can judge for themselves as to what occurred." "In the end, no matter your politics, it's a beacon of light that the acting Director of the CFPB Russel Vought put time and effort into investigating a case that should have never seen a court room and for that we can all be proud that sometimes even the Government tries to make amends for a mistake they made," Sturner said in the email to American Banker. In November, Sturner agreed to settle the case for $105,000 after a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit ruled against him, stating that Congress meant ECOA to broadly prohibit discrimination with respect to any credit transaction. That settlement was agreed to by former CFPB Director Rohit Chopra under the Biden administration.But in March, once the Trump administration took over the agency and reviewed the case,  the CFPB's new Chief Legal Officer Mark Paoletta, claimed the bureau had engaged in misconduct and should never have brought the case. In March, Vought issued a rare press release on Townstone, stating: "A small business complained about skyrocketing crime in Chicago, CFPB made their life hell."The judge noted that the case was filed in 2020 by Kraninger, a Trump appointee."Recall that the investigation and initiation of the lawsuit occurred during President Trump's first term, not under some previous administration," Valderrama wrote. "Now, current CFPB leadership under the second Trump administration, in an act of legal hara-kiri that would make a samurai blush, falls on the proverbial sword and attests that the lawsuit lacked a legal or factual basis," he continued. "That's not all, as current CFPB leadership lambasts CFPB leadership under the first administration for trampling Defendants' First Amendment rights."The CFPB's 2020 lawsuit cited comments that Sturner made on the radio as evidence of discrimination. He described a Jewel-Osco grocery store as "Jungle Jewel," and claimed the South Side of Chicago between Friday and Monday was "hoodlum weekend." The agency also claimed that from 2014 to 2017, Townstone received fewer mortgage applications from Black applicants compared to its peers, fewer mortgage applications for properties in neighborhoods with a high-Black population, and fewer mortgage applications for properties in neighborhoods with a majority of Black residents.Valderrama denied the CFPB's joint motion for relief under rule Rule 60(b)(6) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, which allows a court to grant relief from a final judgment but only in cases that present "extraordinary circumstances.""It was only after a change at the leadership at CFPB that CFPB now seeks — along with Defendants — to unwind the very settlement and consent decree that it negotiated," the judge wrote.  The nonprofit groups had raised concerns about the motion that included a declaration by Dan Bishop, a senior advisor at the Office of Management and Budget, who was detailed part time to the CFPB, and who alleged that Sturner and Townstone were targeted for their political views, and that his comments on the radio were "constitutionally protected speech," under the First Amendment. "To be sure, the facts of the Motion are unusual and the Motion, therefore, unprecedented," Valderrama wrote. "Having considered the arguments presented, the issue before the Court is whether the Parties have met their substantial burden of showing an extraordinary circumstance that justifies vacatur of the final judgment and consent decree. The Court finds they have not."He noted that the CFPB was unable to cite any case involving a joint Rule 60(b)(6) motion to undo a final settlement rather than to facilitate one. Moreover, the Supreme Court recently reaffirmed the principle of a "very strict interpretation of Rule 60(b)," and that the rule applies only in extraordinary circumstances because it "is essential if the finality of judgments is to be preserved," Valderrama wrote. "All in all, balancing the benefits of vacatur against the public interest in the finality of judgment, the Court finds that the latter outweighs the former," the judge wrote.

A closely watched auction of 30-year Treasuries saw stronger-than-expected demand on Thursday, easing for now worries that investors would shun the US government's longest maturity.The $22 billion sale followed weeks of fretting over whether spiraling budget deficits and President Donald Trump's trade war would deter buyers from lending to the US for such a lengthy period. But it drew a yield of 4.844%, below the yield around the auction deadline. That was a sign of solid appetite, and 30-year bonds proceeded to extend their gains, leaving the yield down about 8 basis points at around 4.84% in late afternoon New York trading.READ MORE: Mortgage rates move lower for second weekThe results pushed the benchmark rate on the long bond below where it was trading when Moody's Ratings stripped the US of its last top credit rating in May, blaming successive administrations and Congress for swelling budget shortfalls that it said showed little sign of abating. Investors were wary coming into the event after a surprisingly poor reception for a 20-year auction in May contributed to a selloff that pushed 30-year rates as high as 5.15%, leaving them just below an almost two-decade high and sparking losses in stocks and the dollar. The last 30-year sale also saw somewhat weak demand.The initial reaction is "a sigh of relief that it was a solid auction," said Jack McIntyre, a portfolio manager at Brandywine Global Investment Management. "Ultimately, it will be the economic data that confirms a top is in at 5%."Underscoring the buying interest, the group of primary dealers that underwrite US Treasury debt offerings were awarded 11.4% of the sale, the lowest amount they've been left with since November. The result followed a well-received sale of 10-year notes on Wednesday."The market continues to look for any evidence of a pullback in sponsorship for US Treasuries and this week's pair of stop-throughs for 10s and 30s provided no such fodder for the bond vigilantes," said Ian Lyngen, head of US rates strategy at BMO Capital Markets. Thursday's outcome was even more notable as it came after the maturity had already rallied in the past two trading sessions on the back of softer inflation and jobless claims data. Looking ahead, there's still plenty of concern around the maturity given longer-term worries about government spending and rising debt levels, and the potential for tariffs to reignite inflation."The positive inflation data should continue to be a small source of support over the near-term," said John Canavan, analyst at Oxford Economics. "But we still expect upward pressure on inflation will develop due to tariffs in the months ahead, so that support may be temporary." Canavan said he's "not convinced 5% will hold for the 30-year."The concern around government spending and long-term debt has been evident in other global markets as well, after signs of weak demand for auctions in Japan, South Korea and Australia.The outcome for the US long-bond auction came despite recent angst around the president's tax bill, which is forecast by some to add trillions to US budget deficits in the years ahead — though at least partially mitigated by income from tariffs the administration has instituted. Against that backdrop of expanding government shortfalls, investors have demanded higher yields on longer maturities, increasing a cushion known as the term premium and causing the yield curve to steepen."I still worry about the impact on the long-end from fiscal and trade policy, with term premium likely to remain elevated and the curve set to remain steeper," said Gennadiy Goldberg, head of US rates strategy at TD Securities. "The market is quite focused on deficits and if economic data starts to show signs of softening, investor attention could rapidly shift away from deficits, pushing yields lower amid flight to safety flows."

Freddie Mac is instituting higher limits for amounts it will reimburse for attorney costs associated with uncontested distressed mortgage resolutions, including mediation, and certain bankruptcy services.Specific amounts include $650 for preparing and recording a loan released after a deed-in-lieu of foreclosure gets completed, according to a bulletin. The limit for a premediation conference is $350 when there's a determination after it's held that an initial hearing isn't necessary. Limits for attorney fees related to bankruptcy services now go as high as $1,350 for a  Chapter 11, 12 or 13 motion for relief from stay. Bankruptcy cases must be closed prior to filing the motion and be documented as required. That's up from 2022, when that maximum was $1,150.Freddie additionally is allowing fee reimbursement related to judicial foreclosures in Massachusetts up to $4,800. Massachusetts has historically offered two paths to foreclosure, one that is judicial and another that is not.Freddie also will be updating expense codes for postponing foreclosures starting July 28. The government-sponsored enterprise has updated the foreclosure sale reporting template on its Resolve default-management technology interface with new requirements effective June 30. The reporting is time sensitive."Servicers must upload the foreclosure sale reporting template in Resolve no later than the business day immediately following the date of the foreclosure sale," according to Freddie Mac.Mortgage companies also face monetary penalties of $100 per day when foreclosure sale reporting is incorrect. Servicers must go through a formal rollback process to request corrections or removals of reported information.After the foreclosure sale is complete, servicers can discontinue electronic data reporting process for monthly delinquency and default information, according to Freddie's bulletin.

Executives at independent mortgage banks saw their average annual compensation remain largely flat in 2024 compared to the previous year, according to filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.Some IMB leaders saw their pay rise or dip slightly due to stock awards received in 2024 — or a lack of them compared to 2023.READ MORE: What top mortgage execs were paid in 2023However, a few standout executives, including CEOs and presidents, reported eye-catching compensation packages. One CEO earned $26 million in 2024, a 665% increase from the year before. The executive began the role in mid-2023, which may explain the sharp increase in pay.Another CEO, who leads a publicly traded real estate investment firm and topped the compensation list in 2023, did so again in 2024 with $21 million in earnings.Scroll through to see what the top mortgage executives were paid in 2024 and how their compensation changed from the previous year.

Executives at independent mortgage banks saw their average annual compensation remain largely flat in 2024 compared to the previous year, according to filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.Some IMB leaders saw their pay rise or dip slightly due to stock awards received in 2024 — or a lack of them compared to 2023.READ MORE: What top mortgage execs were paid in 2023However, a few standout executives, including CEOs and presidents, reported eye-catching compensation packages. One CEO earned $26 million in 2024, a 665% increase from the year before. The executive began the role in mid-2023, which may explain the sharp increase in pay.Another CEO, who leads a publicly traded real estate investment firm and topped the compensation list in 2023, did so again in 2024 with $21 million in earnings.Scroll through to see what the top mortgage executives were paid in 2024 and how their compensation changed from the previous year.

United Wholesale Mortgage is bringing back a conventional purchase mortgage in which the borrower only has to come up with a 1% down payment.A previous version of the product was last offered in May 2024.With this iteration, the mortgage is available up to the conforming loan limit for buyers at or below 80% of the area median income with a credit score of 620 or above. While the product has a loan-to-value ratio of 97%, the remaining 2%, up to $7,000, is being contributed by UWM as part of a down payment assistance program. UWM does not have an end date for this program at this time.Underwriting follows Fannie Mae HomeReady or Freddie Mac Home Possible guidelines and thus needs to meet Desktop Underwriter or Loan Product Advisor eligibility.In the past version, first introduced in 2016, the DPA was up to $4,000. That product was dropped when UWM came out with a 0% down purchase mortgage that offered DPA up to $15,000 to cover the 3% to bring it to the 97% LTV. The 0% down program was sunset at the beginning of this year."This program is a win for borrowers and will get them into a home sooner with less money out of their pocket," Mat Ishbia, UWM's president and CEO, said in a press release. "This gives independent mortgage brokers a significant competitive advantage both with their clients and real estate agents this purchase season."What is happening with the spring housing market?It has so far been a slow spring home purchase season. The latest Mortgage Bankers Association Weekly Application Survey reported a volume increase for the first time in a month, up 12.5% overall from the prior week, with purchases up 10% on a seasonally adjusted basis."Despite continued affordability challenges, higher inventory levels are bringing more buyers into the market," MBA President and CEO Bob Broeksmit said. "Purchase activity last week was 20% higher than a year ago."While there are signs that the housing market is tilting in favor of buyers, active listings rose just 13.9% for the four weeks ended June 8 compared with the same period in 2024; this was the smallest increase in a year, Redfin said. New listings made during the timeframe were up 5.2%.The median sales price of $397,000 was up 1.6% versus 2024, but the median monthly mortgage payment rose 4.1% to $2,854, which Redfin said was $29 shy of the record high."It's still tough for many Americans to buy a home, as affordability remains a real challenge, but house hunters should know that sellers are accepting offers below asking price and giving concessions to get deals done," said Chen Zhao, Redfin's head of economics research in a press release.