Daily Dose

Mortgage rates may be rising, but the housing market doesn’t seem to mind. In fact, several indicators have improved alongside rising rates, according to the HousingPulse Tracking Survey released this week. The lending atmosphere is becoming friendlier, especially to first-time buyers. Simultaneously, the average time on market for non-distressed properties and the average sales-to-list price ratio both improved year-over-year in December.

Total existing-home sales--including all completed transactions of single-family homes, townhomes, condominiums, and co-ops--increased 1.0 percent month-over-month to a seasonally adjusted annualized rate of 4.87 million last month, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR). November's sales rate was revised down to 4.82 million. Even with prices and mortgage rates slated to rise, NAR president Steve Brown says sales should hold strong in 2014 as job numbers improve. That doesn't mean the year won't be without challenges, though.

Ever since the economy took a hit in 2008, downsizing has been a top priority for many homeowners and renters. The McMansion is out; low-maintenance living is in. You can see it in traditional listings as well as on the real estate auction block. With finances still in flux for most Americans, cutting back on monthly costs of maintaining a home or apartment is essential. Enter the micro apartment—the latest trend in economical living space.

Experts at Freddie Mac and Equifax expect falling unemployment and economic growth to keep the housing market steady in 2014. This, despite climbing interest rates and anticipated growth in housing prices nationwide. While industry economists welcome the idea of a steady, slowly recovering housing market, they also have a checklist of housing and economic indicators they're keeping tabs on that could influence the pace of recovery.

Despite declining foreclosure starts over the year, distressed sales made up a higher percentage of overall home sales in 2013 than they did the previous year, according to the U.S. Residential & Foreclosure Sales Report released Thursday by RealtyTrac. Foreclosure sales—which include sales to third-party buyers at foreclosure auction and sales of REOs—combined with short sales to make up 16.2 percent of residential property sales in 2013, up from 14.5 percent in 2012. The report also revealed an uptick in cash purchases at the close of the year.

The co-founder/chairman and the CEO of RE/MAX were named among the most influential real estate industry executives of 2013 on two prestigious lists released last week. Dave Liniger, who founded the Denver-based real estate franchise in 1973, and Margaret Kelly, who became the company's president and CEO in 2005, were named to the Inman 100 Most Influential Real Estate Leaders and the Swanepoel Power 200.

Ocwen's servicing segment is set to acquire mortgage servicing rights (MSRs) on a $39 billion portfolio from Wells Fargo, the two companies announced Wednesday. The loans underlying the MSRs in the portfolio are primarily in private label securities, the companies said, and they were not originated by Wells Fargo. They represent about 2 percent of Wells Fargo's total residential servicing portfolio as of the end of 2013.

Mortgage document preparation vendor International Document Services, Inc. (IDS), in Salt Lake City, Utah, has hired Daniel Miller as VP of business development. With nearly 20 years’ experience in sales, Miller is responsible for overseeing IDS’ various partner integrations and new customer implementations, in addition to managing and growing sales in the western part of the United States.

After much anticipation, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued its final rule for new integrated mortgage disclosures, combining the overlapping disclosures required by the Truth in Lending Act (TILA) and the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA). The new rule will certainly change the landscape of the settlement services and mortgage lending industries as we know them.

According to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), the new lending rules that went into effect on January 10 are meant to take a back-to-basics approach to mortgage lending and lower the risk of default and foreclosure among borrowers. However, many industry veterans feel the rules may hurt those they are designed to protect, primarily low income borrowers.