Who can think of September 21st without thinking about Earth, Wind, and Fire? Yesterday I was on a United Airlines flight out of San Francisco to Savannah, in Row 14. There was no row 13… but I knew what row I was really in! Speaking of numbers, obvious or otherwise, this article caught my eye: The Average American Spends This Much on a Mortgage.” Credit unions and banks have obviously seen their residential lending volume drop but are usually able to move personnel to other departments within the company rather than lay them off. Figuring out how to increase business is a big topic, and Black homeownership is being discussed. For some perspective I turned to the St. Louis Fed with its extensive library of graphs. In fact, if you want to look at the opportunity for growth, look no further than the disparity in homeownership between White, Black, Asian, and Hispanic populations. (Today’s podcast can be found here and this week’s is sponsored by the Trade-In Mortgage powered by Calque. Homeowners can buy before they sell, make non-contingent offers, and tap their home equity to fund the down payment on their next home. Lenders can help their clients negotiate a lower purchase price, reduce their interest payments, and eliminate PMI. Hear an interview with Planet Home’s James de Palma on the current servicing market and trends in asset management.) Lender and Broker Software, Programs, and Services More than 40 million people will resume making federal student loan payments in October following a three-year pause. The resumption of payments will drive up DTI for many prospective homebuyers, compounding current affordability challenges. With monthly payments for bachelor’s degree holders averaging $267, and master’s degree holders averaging $567, how do you plan on helping people with student loan debt make their dreams of homeownership come true? Join Catalina Kaiyoorawongs of LoanSense and Dave Savage of TrustEngine at 2 pm ET today for an ACUMA Inside Track webinar on loan strategies and federal programs that can help homebuyers with federal student loans. Register now to save your seat.