Headlines

A final look at consumer sentiment for the month of July shows American confidence in the economy softened compared to June as expectations for the rest of the year became more tempered. The University of Michigan/Thomson Reuters Index of Consumer Sentiment finished July at a reading of 81.8, below the 82.5 recorded in June but better than the 81.3 captured in the month's preliminary survey.

According to the latest figures released Friday from the U.S. Census new home sales, starts, and spending were down in June and for the first half of the year. Spending on private construction in June came in at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $685.5 billion, 1 percent below the revised May estimate of $692 billion. Residential construction alone was at $356 billion, which is 0.3 percent below the revised May estimate.

In a quarterly survey conducted by Zillow and Pulsenomics, a panel of economists, real estate experts, and market strategists agreed that the median age of first-time homebuyers is likely to keep moving up in the next decade as millennials wait until later in their lives to purchase. Among the more than 100 experts polled, a combined 85 percent said they expect the median first-time homebuyer age to rise at least marginally in the coming years.

The American Legal and Financial Network (ALFN) announced that Michael J. McCormick, Esq., has been re-elected to its board of directors for a second term.

U.S. payrolls grew less than expected in July, a potential sign that the labor market recovery might be cooling following an early summer hiring spike.

The House Financial Services Committee passed a reform bill this week to require the Federal Reserve to adopt a "more predictable rules-based" monetary policy. The Fed has already warned of serious trouble if the nation's central bank were held to formal policy regarding its ability to set interest rates.

CFPB Director Richard Cordray appeared before the House Financial Services Committee this week to address allegations of discrimination and a culture of retaliation at the agency. While Cordray would not discuss any individual discrimination complaints, he said, "We take each of these allegations very seriously and we will continue to work diligently to resolve any issues through all appropriate channels."

Second-quarter profits at Ocwen Financial fell short compared to last year as costs came up. The company reported net income of $67.0 million last quarter, a decline of nearly $10 million from the year ago period. While revenue was up 2 percent year-on-year to $553.1 million, normalized pretax earnings took a 7 percent hit, which Ocwen chairman Bill Erbey explained was the result of higher regulatory and compliance costs and interest expense.

Capsilon, a provider of cloud-based document management solutions for mortgage lenders and investors, introduced its new chief technology officer (CTO), naming V.J. Anand to the position.

Mortgage servicers have made substantial progress over the last year in improving borrowers' customer experience, a new survey released by J.D. Power shows. In its yearly survey of customer satisfaction for primary mortgage servicers, the company found the servicing industry as a whole averages 754 on a 1,000-point scale, up more than 20 points from last year.