Mortgage Insights

Plain-English guidance on rates, home buying, and refinancing from the The Lending Stars team.

Housing Industry News

Zillow Preview expands as more brokerages seek pre-market exposure

Apr 10, 2026 · 2:01 PM Brooklee Han, HousingWire Automation HousingWire

Nearly 60 brokerages and franchisors have now joined Zillow Preview , giving agents and sellers a way to publicly market pre‑MLS listings on Zillow and…

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Housing Industry News

2026 RealTrends Verified: The power players hold — but the real story is who’s gaining ground

Apr 10, 2026 · 11:00 AM Tracey Velt HousingWire

The housing market remains in flux, setting the stage for this year’s RealTrends Verified rankings. Inventory has improved but remains constrained,…

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Housing Industry News

Human expertise in an AI world: Why partnership still wins

Apr 10, 2026 · 7:35 AM Ryan Ozonian HousingWire

The conversation around artificial intelligence has largely defaulted to one of two extremes: AI as an existential threat to human work, or AI as a magic…

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Housing Industry News

Virginia YIGBY bill puts Spanberger housing agenda on the line

Apr 9, 2026 · 09:30 PM Richard Lawson HousingWire

Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger has until Monday to sign or veto legislation that would make her state one of the few that allow faith-based organizations…

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Housing Industry News

PAM appraisal platform targets AMC fees, seeks to give lenders more control

Apr 9, 2026 · 08:39 PM Sarah Wolak HousingWire

A new appraisal management platform is aiming to upend the traditional role of appraisal management companies ( AMCs ) by allowing mortgage lenders to…

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Housing Industry News

Lower’s John Berkowitz on building lead generation certainty with Movoto Advantage

Apr 9, 2026 · 08:19 PM Brooklee Han HousingWire

After being acquired by mortgage lender Lower in May 2025, executives at real estate listing portal Movoto said they hoped to use Lower’s network to connect…

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Housing Industry News

New Cheval Holdings acquires Surge, appoints Jimmy Gillespie as CEO

Apr 9, 2026 · 07:32 PM HousingWire Automation HousingWire

Surge , a partner intelligence platform for wholesale mortgage lenders , has been acquired by New Cheval Holdings as the wholesale channel faces tighter…

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Mortgage Rate News

Mortgage Rates Trickle Just a Bit Lower

Apr 9, 2026 · 07:25 PM Matthew Graham Mortgage News Daily

Many borrowers will see no difference between yesterday and today's mortgage rate quotes. The average lender moved just a hair lower. Once again, the rate…

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Housing Industry News

loanDepot, Figure team up on streamlined home loan and equity products

Apr 9, 2026 · 06:18 PM HousingWire Automation HousingWire

loanDepot announced Thursday that it has formed a strategic partnership with Figure Technology Solutions to power a new “express-path” home loan product…

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Housing Industry News

Remodeler confidence slips but remains positive, NAHB reports

Apr 9, 2026 · 05:41 PM Tyler Williams, HousingWire Automation HousingWire

On Thursday, the National Association of Home Builders ( NAHB ) released its NAHB/ Westlake Royal Remodeling Market Index (RMI) for the first quarter of…

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