Origination

The Mortgage Bankers Association's (MBA) sales team has added Barbara Hanson as director of education sales, the group announced.

Mortgage applications declined at the end of the year, but Capital Economics expects applications to rise this year as both the housing market and broader economy continue to improve.

In the Dallas area, Matt Martin Real Estate Management LLC (MMREM) welcomed Jo Ann Kruse as COO of MMREM and its subsidiaries.

Prospect Mortgage announced its acquisition of the Diamond Mortgage Group, bringing to Prospect a group of dedicated mortgage professionals serving Southeastern Connecticut.

Mortgage credit became a little more accessible in December, according to the monthly Mortgage Credit Availability Index from the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA). The index score for December is 110.9, up 0.6 percent from a reading of 110.2 in November. The index has been hovering around the 110 mark for the past several months, fluctuating slightly with a decrease in November after an increase in October and two straight months of declines in August and September.

WFG Title Company of California announced the hiring of a new SVP and Orange County manager. The company named Bryan Kelley in the role.

First Financial Bancorp is now serving the Fort Wayne, Indiana, market following the company's hiring of commercial and residential mortgage teams in the area.

Confidence in housing among the Realtor crowd increased slightly in November, though concerns about credit availability continue to temper that optimism. A survey from the National Association of Realtors (NAR) shows that among who reported transactions in November but ultimately did not close a sale, 9 percent said the homebuyer could not obtain financing, and of those, 6 percent reported the buyer gave up on purchasing the home. If lenders returned to "normal" credit standards, NAR says as many as 500,000 more sales could occur.

As new regulations go into effect and a new mortgage market takes shape this year, lenders and originators must reconsider current relationships and look for partnerships that synch with their priorities, according to Hammerhouse Strategic Growth Partners. Hammerhouse has dubbed 2014 "the year of the originator free agency," stating in a recent release, "[T]he key trend impacting the residential mortgage market in 2014 will be the development of the free agency market for successful mortgage originators."

In Virginia, Genworth Financial, Inc., announced the hiring of Lori M. Evangel as EVP and chief risk officer.