“There’s a fine line between a numerator and a denominator. Only a fraction of people will find this funny.” Our business is a business of numbers. My son Robbie and I were fortunate to spend some time with the MBA’s Chief Economist Mike Fratantoni, Ph.D, earlier this week who mentioned that there is $500 billion in home equity debt compared to about $33 trillion of total home equity in the U.S. You gotta figure that many people who own their homes free and clear aren’t going to obtain a home loan. But still, there’s a lot of room for 2nds and HELOCs! In other primary market supply news, there are fewer loans to find buyers or portfolios for: we recently learned that single-family home building decreased by 6.8 percent and building permits decline 4 percent. (In the primary markets, this is bad news for home buyers as they continue to struggle with the lack of supply.) Want some good news? FHA delinquencies are now above the pre-COVID book, but FHA foreclosure levels are still very low. (Today’s podcast is found here and this week’s is sponsored by Candor. Candor’s authentic Expert System AI has powered more than 2 million flawless, hands off underwrites. Every credit risk decision Candor makes is backed by a Warranty, eliminating repurchase worries. Hear what Robbie says is one of his favorite interviews year-to-date, with Imperial Fund’s Jared Neale on all aspects of residential mortgage-backed securities, from how they are packaged to current market demand.) Lender and Broker Software and Services