Government

Supreme Lending, a Dallas-based nationwide mortgage banker with branches throughout the country, announced Brian Mitchell is joining the team as its new SVP and national sales manager. Mitchell is a 20-year veteran mortgage banker, having worked most recently as regional VP for Envoy Mortgage.

Consumer spending fell $20.2 billion in October as personal income remained relatively flat, the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) reported Friday. The report was weaker than the 0.3 percent growth in income and 0.1 percent growth in spending economists had expected. While the report reflects a weak beginning to the fourth quarter, the disappointing growth largely comes from work interruptions brought by superstorm Sandy, which impacted 24 states, by BEA's estimation.

After forming during the housing downturn in 2007, Clear Title Agency decided to focus on generating revenue from REOs and foreclosures by handling title and escrow duties for banks. Through this strategy, Arizona-based Clear Title stated it has experienced 200 percent annual growth after five years in business.

Fixed mortgage rates showed little signs of life in the last full week of November, hovering near record lows as markets show increased worry about the fiscal cliff.

Zillow, Inc., announced its sixth acquisition in the last two years. The company has entered into an agreement to buy San Francisco-based HotPads, a map-based rental and real estate search site. The $16 million deal is expected to close by the end of the year.

Vericrest Financial, Inc., announced it will acquire about $2.7 billion in mortgage servicing rights (MSRs).

The Pending Home Sales Index (PHSI) rose 5.2 percent to 104.8 in October, its highest level since March 2007, the National Association of Realtors reported Thursday. Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, explained the jump by suggesting buyers are responding to favorable market conditions, noting "[w]e've had very good housing affordability conditions for quite some time, but we're seeing more impact now from steady job creation, and rising consumer confidence about home buying now that home prices have clearly turned positive."

Launching a new division focused on mortgage banking, Hammerhouse LLC is expanding into the lending industry. The new unit, Tactical Ops Recruiting Quality (TORQ), will target the placement of operational and other non-sales professionals around the U.S.

Real GDP growth for the third quarter was revised up significantly, reaching a 2.7 percent annualized growth, the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) reported Thursday. Economists had forecast a 2.8 percent growth rate from the first estimate of 2.0 percent reported last month. Residential fixed investment accounted for $12.2 billion in the third quarter, according to the revised report, virtually unchanged from the $12.3 billion in the advance report of the third-quarter GDP increase and up from the $7.2 contribution in the second quarter.

First-time claims for unemployment insurance fell 23,000 to 393,000 for the week ending November 24, the Labor Department reported Thursday. Economists expected 390,000 initial claims filings. First-time unemployment claims are gradually returning to pre-Sandy levels but remain elevated. In the four weeks prior to the storm that ravaged the East Coast, initial claims averaged about 369,000. Claims spiked to 451,000 in the week immediately following and have averaged 405,000 in the two weeks following.