Homebridge Financial Services unveiled the “Our Community” hub on the company’s website. This resource provides a new level of transparency about Homebridge’s current diversity and inclusion (D&I) internal workforce efforts and measures progress, putting the company among the first in the mortgage industry to create a public-facing resource that shares its D&I journey.
Clear Capital announced the launch of Desktop Appraisal and Desktop Data Collection, two products designed to further modernize and increase certainty in the appraisal process. Desktop Appraisal is a GSE-compliant 1004 Desktop/70D residential appraisal that “quickly delivers a reliable opinion of value with price certainty,” according to a statement from Clear Capital. Desktop Data Collection, meanwhile, is a certified, background-checked, data collector-enabled gathering service designed to capture property information and photos. It also generates high-fidelity floor plans, including interior walls and digital gross living areas, that are aligned with benchmarks of the American National Standards Institute.
Ally Home, the residential mortgage lending arm of Ally Bank, expanded its services into Massachusetts, Vermont and Virginia as the company continues to execute plans to bring its modern digital mortgage experience to consumers in all 50 states. Currently available in 46 states and the District of Columbia, Ally Home’s nationwide rollout is scheduled to add service in Hawaii and New Hampshire later this spring, followed by Nevada and New York by the end of this year.
Hometown Lenders (HTL) announced the opening of three more branches. Its branch in Westport, Connecticut, will be managed by Moshe Niv. Steven Di Lucca will run the new branch in Spokane, Washington, while Dustin Brown will run the location in Walla Walla, Washington. Based in Huntsville, Alabama, HTL now has more than 100 branch locations and is doing business in more than 40 states.
Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) announced its plans to launch its first mortgage futures contracts on June 13, 2022, subject to regulatory approval. The two futures contracts will be cash-settled and based on the ICE U.S. conforming 30-year fixed mortgage rate lock index and the ICE U.S. jumbo 30-year fixed mortgage rate lock index. The indices are published daily and track U.S. residential mortgage applications in which borrowers and lenders have committed to lock in the interest rate prior to closing.
