Category: Optimal Blue
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Optimal Blue’s Shawn Chandwani Named to HousingWire’s 2025 Rising Star List
PLANO, Texas — Optimal Blue today announced that Senior Software Engineering Manager Shawn Chandwani, 34, has been named among HousingWire’s Rising Stars. The annual list celebrates young professionals who shoulder significant leadership responsibilities and contribute to the broader industry and business landscape, establishing themselves as influential figures and leaders for tomorrow.
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Optimal Blue Establishes Alliance with Cotality to Expand the Reach of Its Mortgage Origination and Pricing Data
PLANO, Texas — Optimal Blue today announced a strategic alliance with Cotality™ (formerly CoreLogic®) that expands access to its mortgage origination and pricing data. Through this collaboration, Cotality will offer Optimal Blue’s data to a broader audience, including hedge funds, capital markets participants, and investment firms seeking insights into the mortgage markets.
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40% Jump in Rate-and-Term Refis Drives Overall Lock Growth as Purchase Activity Stalls
PLANO, Texas — Optimal Blue today released its February 2025 Market Advantage mortgage data report, showing a 7% month-over-month increase in mortgage lock volume driven primarily by a surge in refinance activity. Rate-and-term refinances saw the biggest jump, rising nearly 40% as homeowners seized the opportunity to lower their monthly payments. Cash-out refinances also edged…
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January Mortgage Lock Data Shows Year-Over-Year Improvement in Refinance Volume Despite Higher Rates
PLANO, Texas — Optimal Blue today released its January 2025 Market Advantage mortgage data report, revealing a sharp rise in year-over-year (YoY) refinance activity alongside a drop in purchase lock counts. The decline in purchase lock counts marks the lowest January count since Optimal Blue began tracking this data in 2019. Meanwhile, refinance lock volume…
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Optimal Blue Introduces Seven Major Innovations at Its Inaugural User Summit in San Diego
SAN DIEGO, Calif. — Optimal Blue today unveiled a series of new products and features, alongside its major Ask Obi AI assistant announcement, at its Summit user conference in San Diego. These innovation announcements underscore the company’s commitment to delivering high-impact solutions, at no additional cost, that tackle real-world challenges and help lenders maximize profitability.
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Optimal Blue Announces Ask Obi, an AI Assistant to Provide Mortgage Lending Executives With Real-Time Business Insights
SAN DIEGO, Calif. — Optimal Blue today announced Ask Obi, an AI assistant designed to provide mortgage lending executives with instant, actionable insights from their Optimal Blue products and data. Unveiled during Optimal Blue’s inaugural Summit user conference in San Diego, Ask Obi gives lenders the power to view their operations holistically with data aggregation…
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December Mortgage Lock Data Reveals Year-Over-Year Increases Across All Loan Types Despite Seasonal Downturn
PLANO, Texas — Optimal Blue today released its December 2024 Market Advantage mortgage data report, showcasing year-over-year (YoY) growth in mortgage activity, even as seasonal trends led to a month-over-month (MoM) decline in rate lock volumes. Overall, December mortgage lock volume was up 26% YoY, driven by an 18% increase in purchase locks, a 43%…
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Mortgage Lock Activity Fell in November as Interest Rates Hit Their Highest Levels Since July
PLANO, Texas — Optimal Blue today released its November 2024 Market Advantage mortgage data report, highlighting a 25% decrease in month-over-month (MoM) lock volume as interest rates hit their highest levels since early July, creating headwinds for affordability.
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Optimal Blue Announces Tony Hawk, Housing Industry Leaders to Headline Inaugural User Conference
PLANO, Texas — Optimal Blue today announced the speaker lineup for its inaugural user conference, the Optimal Blue Summit 2025. Legendary skateboarder and entrepreneur Tony Hawk will headline the event. The conference will also feature sessions led by Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) Chief Economist and Senior Vice President of Research and Business Development Michael Fratantoni,…
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October Mortgage Lock Data Shows Resilience and Cracks in the Mortgage Market as Interest Rates Tick up 65 Basis Points
PLANO, Texas — Optimal Blue today released its October 2024 Market Advantage mortgage data report, highlighting resilient purchase activity in the face of rising interest rates and affordability challenges. Despite a 65-basis-point (bps) increase in the Optimal Blue Mortgage Market Indices (OBMMI) 30-year conforming rate, purchase lock volume grew by 12% month over month (MoM),…