We’re all following Hurricane Helene and its impact on lives and housing stock in the news. Will Rogers famously said, “All I know is what I read in the newspapers.” (He also said, “Politics has got so expensive that it takes lots of money to even get beat with.”) I could say, “All I know is what I read in predictions.” iEmergent, a forecasting and advisory services firm for the financial services, mortgage and real estate industries, announced a downward revision of its 2024–2026 U.S. Mortgage Origination Forecast. “Updated to reflect ongoing economic conditions, iEmergent now expects lower-than-anticipated growth for the next two years, particularly in the purchase mortgage market, while refinance volumes are projected to rise due to a gradual decline in mortgage interest rates.” Meanwhile, I received a short, harsh prediction from someone keeping their finger on the pulse of mergers and acquisitions: “Those lenders that do not have servicing portfolios and are running low on cash are going to race to the bottom on rates, lose more money, and be closing their doors if they don’t sell.” (Today’s podcast is found here and this week’s is Sponsored by Silk Title Co. Silk is for lenders who have centralized operations, are tech driven, process oriented, focused on the borrower experience, standardized in their approach, and most importantly… collaborative. Listen to an interview with Silk Title’s Marc Trachtenberg on all things title, from how the process can be moved forward in the origination process, to the room for evolution, to what makes for a great title process, among other things.)