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09.30.24

Written by Chase Majerus

Warming Mortgage Rehire Market

Welcome to This Week Today, your pocket-sized housing fairy delivering the latest insights in mortgage, real estate, and housing news! This week, we dive into the warming rehire market for mortgage lenders, uncover the growing threat of real estate fraud, and look at the Fed’s struggle with mortgage bonds. Plus, we explore how S1 FinFit can whip your finances into shape, take a tour of Karlie Kloss and Joshua Kushner’s new Malibu mansion, and recap our exciting Modern Up sales rally in Vegas.

Ready to stay informed and inspired? We’ve got all the juicy details for you right here!

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S1L Home Equity Loan

Use Your Home For The Best Future Gains

A home equity line of credit, or HELOC, lets you borrow against your home’s available equity. Applying for a HELOC with Synergy One Lending is fast and easy. Our application is fast, easy, and all online. If pre-approved, you’ll be instantly presented with your offer options.

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Warming Rehire Market

Mortgage lenders are cautiously ramping up hiring after years of layoffs, anticipating a drop in rates. Unlike the 2020-2021 hiring frenzy, they’re now more focused on cultural fit and smarter compensation (sorry, no fat signing bonuses).

Companies like loanDepot and Better are beefing up staff but are keeping it lean and mean, using tech to keep operations efficient. With a crowded talent pool, candidates are accepting lower pay, though some still dream of those glory days salaries. Overall, it’s a more measured approach—less “throw money at it” and more “let’s not hire people we’ll fire in six months.” – Read more here

California Fraud: Growing Issue

Tech veteran Rana Robillard nearly lost $400K to a real estate scam when cyber crooks sent her a fake down payment request that looked legit. Long story short, scammers are getting really good at impersonating emails from title companies, making it easy to trick homebuyers, and real estate fraud is now a multi-million-dollar nightmare.

Luckily, Rana got her money back after months of panic and chasing down banks. Real estate’s shift to online transactions has made things more convenient, but it’s also given these scammers a prime opportunity to strike. Moral of the story: double-check before you wire that dream-home money! – Read more here

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Malibu Beach Mansion

Supermodel Karlie Kloss and businessman Joshua Kushner just scored themselves a Malibu beach mansion that’s as iconic as it is wavy—because why settle for average when you can live in a house that literally looks like a surfboard’s dream?

Oh, and they snagged it with a $20 million discount, proving once again that even supermodels love a good deal. Originally listed at $49.5 million, Kloss and Kushner swooped in and sealed the deal at a cool $29.5 million, which is practically a bargain in Malibu’s luxury market.

The house, known as the “Wave House,” has some seriously unique features that make it a beachfront gem:

  • Designed by architect and surfer Harry Gesner to mimic cresting waves, the house is perched on stilts over the beach
  • Features six bedrooms and eight bathrooms, with each bedroom facing the ocean for breathtaking views
  • The primary suite comes with a hot tub and sauna, perfect for unwinding after a day of Malibu living
  • Wraparound circular decks echo the shape of incoming surf, blending the house with its coastal surroundings
  • The roof is covered with hand-cut copper shingles that resemble fish scales, adding to the home’s oceanic theme
  • The home boasts a 30-year legacy of famous ownership, including rock star Rod Stewart and music exec Mo Ostin

Check out this video which showcases this ridiculous home!

Financial Fitness

Flex Your Finances with S1 FinFit

With mortgage rates finally starting to drop and affordability showing signs of improvement, things are looking up for homebuyers.

According to recent reports, lower interest rates, rising wages, and slower home-price growth are giving buyers some relief, but owning a home is still a big stretch for many—especially in places like California and New York. Even with these improvements, the reality is that budgeting for a home, keeping track of your finances, and finding a house within your means can still feel overwhelming.

That’s where S1 FinFit comes in.

This app is designed to help you get your financial fitness back on track by offering tools to reliably prepare for homeownership, keep track of your budgets and spending, and accurately monitor your credit score. If you’re already a homeowner, S1 FinFit even lets you track your home’s value.

Whether you’re planning to buy or just need to whip your finances into shape, S1 FinFit can help you manage it all in one place—making the dream of owning a home just a little more achievable.

Download S1 FinFit here!

S1 FinFit App

Digital financial assistant at your fingertips

S1 FinFit is a FREE app that provides a roadmap to help you reach your financial and lifestyle goals, no matter how big or small! Free credit monitoring with alerts, set financial goals, create budgets, and keep track of your spending to see where your money is going.

Download the app on the appropriate app store with the links below!

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Fed’s Mortgage Bond Dilemma

Stuck with a 30-Year Commitment?

The Federal Reserve is struggling to offload its massive $2.3 trillion stash of mortgage bonds, thanks to the “lock-in effect” where homeowners are clinging to their low-rate mortgages like prized possessions. Even with interest rates changing, these bonds aren’t going anywhere fast, potentially leaving the Fed stuck with $600 billion in MBS by 2035.

Their plan to let them expire naturally isn’t cutting it, so they might have to start selling them outright. It’s like trying to clean out your garage but realizing you’re still going to be tripping over boxes a decade later! – Read more here

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Modern Up

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Synergy One Lending recently held our exciting sales rally, Modern Up, in Las Vegas, where we focused on evolving with our customers and adapting to the changing market. The event was incredibly informative, packed with valuable insights, and left us energized to take our growth to the next level.

We’re thrilled about the new strategies we’ve learned and can’t wait to share more about how we’re evolving to better serve our clients. Working, learning, and growing together is what drives us, and we love every step of the journey! Check out some of the videos we made during this event!

“It’s officially Day 1 of the Modern Up Sales Rally in Las Vegas, and we’re ready to kick things off in the best way possible!” – Watch here

“BIG NEWS: Today we are excited to announce that we have launched SynerGPT, Synergy One Lending’s cutting-edge AI solution built specifically for Mortgage Professionals! Whether it’s answering complex mortgage questions or providing instant solutions, SynerGPT is here to streamline your workflow and help you serve clients faster than ever. Welcome to the future of mortgage expertise—powered by AI.” – Watch here

“A huge thank you to the incredible sales panel at the Modern Up Rally! Your expertise, insights, and strategies have truly inspired us to level up our game and push the boundaries of success. We appreciate your time and leadership in guiding us through the ever-evolving mortgage landscape. Let’s keep the momentum going!” – Watch here

Loan officer key takeaways here and here! Shout out to Nolan Voss and Amy Russo!

“Introducing BOOST by Synergy One Lending! Our all-in-one paid advertising platform designed to make running ads easier than ever for loan officers. With BOOST, you can streamline your ad campaigns and get more eyes on your business—all from one powerful tool. Ready to take your marketing to the next level?” – Watch here

“The highlight of Vegas for #themortgagedads was speaking on stage at the #ModernUP event with @synergyonelending, the MODERN mortgage company.” – Watch here

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