Mortgage demand slumped last week as consumers hit the brakes on purchase applications.
Mortgage applications decreased by 7.2% in the week ending Jan. 26 compared to one week earlier on a seasonally adjusted basis, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association‘s (MBA) weekly mortgage applications survey.
“Applications decreased compared to a holiday-adjusted week, driven by a decline in purchase applications that offset a slight increase in refinance activity,”Joel Kan, MBA’s vice president and deputy chief economist, said in a statement. “Low existing housing supply is limiting options for prospective buyers and is keeping home-price growth elevated, resulting in a one-two punch that continues to constrain home purchase activity.”
The average loan size for purchase applications has risen in recent weeks to $444,100, the largest average loan size since May 2022, Kan added. On the strength of lower mortgage rates, homebuyers are reclaiming some purchasing power.
The MBA survey shows the average mortgage rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances ($766,550 or less) remained unchanged at 6.78% last week. Meanwhile, rates on jumbo loans (greater than $766,550) also remained unchanged at 6.94%.
Loan types
The MBA data shows that purchase apps decreased by 11% from one week earlier on a seasonally adjusted basis, while refis picked up by 2% in the same period. Last week, refis comprised 34.2% of the total applications, up from 32.7% the previous week.
The Federal Housing Administration’s (FHA) share of total applications decreased to 13.8% last week, down from 14.1% the week prior. The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) share fell to 13.3%, down from 13.7% the week before. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) share remained unchanged at 0.4%.
The MBA survey, conducted weekly since 1990, covers more than 75% of all U.S. retail residential mortgage applications.
Two Harbors Investment Corp., a New York-based real estate investment trust, announced Tuesday its plan to launch a mortgage origination unit in the second quarter of 2024, less than a year after the company debuted in the servicing business by acquiring RoundPoint Mortgage Servicing Corp. in October 2023.
But don’t expect the firm to compete with big players or grow extensively in originations. The step is part of a defensive strategy to retain customers when mortgage rates drop. Declining rates tend to increase prepayments as borrowers refinance their loans, often away from the existing servicer. This risk reduces the value of mortgage servicing rights (MSR).
Two Harbors’ announcement came on the heels of a reported $444.7 million net loss in the fourth quarter of 2023, compared to a loss of $294 million in the previous quarter, according to filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
The firm’s CEO, Bill Greenberg, told analysts that the company’s focus is to “develop a best-in-class direct-to-consumer originations channel to provide recapture” on the company’s servicing portfolio, which totaled $3 billion as of Dec. 31.
Company executives believe that the weighted average coupon rate of the company’s servicing portfolio — 3.45% in the fourth quarter — signals a low risk of prepayments for now. It gives the company some time to build the origination channel from scratch.
“Despite the decline in mortgage rates over the quarter, our MSR portfolio … still has less than 1% of its balances with 50 basis points or more of rate incentive to refinance, which should keep prepayment rates low,” Two Harbors chief investment officer Nick Letica said in a statement.
“We are long away from serious refinancing activity unless interest rates fall precipitously,” Greenberg stated, which makes the executives believe they “have the time to build the platform that we want.” He says the company did not consider an acquisition because other potential structures were built for different environments or have legacy risks.
Two Harbors has already started to hire managers and team members for the new origination platform, which is expected to begin making loans in the second quarter.
Greenberg explained that with the direct-to-consumer platform, Two Harbors can also offer borrowers second-lien home equity loans and other ancillary products.
“We are not going to be a retail originator,” he said. “We are not going to be someone who’s going to compete with the largest guys out in the world. The point of this thing is really to protect our servicing portfolio, to defend our portfolio, to perform recapture on our portfolio.”
Two Harbors executives also told analysts that the capital investment for the mortgage origination unit will be low, as the intent is not to hold the loans. The company will likely sell them directly to agencies, keep the servicing rights and replace the servicing tasks that otherwise would have evaporated due to lower rates.
In October, the company completed its acquisition of RoundPoint. It has already completed nine of 10 scheduled subservicing transfers. The remaining transaction is expected to occur on Feb. 1, with the final “clear up” transfer of loans planned for early June.
Following the acquisition, according to Two Harbors executives, the company became the eighth largest conventional servicer in the country.
Atlanta-based nonqualified mortgage (non-QM) lender Angel Oak Mortgage Solutions is tapping into the home equity line of credit (HELOC) market amid elevated equity levels.
Unlike traditional HELOCs that require a homeowner to have at least 20% equity in their home, Angel Oak’s HELOC qualifies borrowers based on trailing 12- or 24-month bank statements and provides a line of credit with no usage restrictions, the lender said.
Angel Oak’s bank-statement HELOC allows qualified, self-employed borrowers to leverage their home equity while maintaining their primary mortgage. Borrowers can qualify for this loan with owner-occupied homes, second homes or investment properties.
“Bringing our new bank statement HELOC product to the market is a testament to our dedication to meeting the evolving needs of borrowers nationwide,” Tom Hutchens, executive vice president of production for Angel Oak Mortgage Solutions, said in a statement.
“The introduction of this product and the growth of our team position our firm to better support the originators and borrowers we serve while scaling our services to align with the momentum in the market.”
Angel Oak’s HELOC product launch comes amid the still high equity levels across the country.
While overall HELOC loan originations by count were down 7% in the third quarter of 2023 as interest rates spiked, the Federal Reserve reported that outstanding balances on HELOCs increased during this period to $349 billion, up $9 billion from the prior quarter.
In addition, Fed data shows that outstanding debt linked to home equity products also increased in the third quarter to $501 billion, up 2.3% from $490 billion in the second quarter.
Angel Oak has originated $9.4 billion in non-QM volume since 2020 and more than $18.6 billion in non-QM loans since the company’s inception in 2013, according to its release.
The non-QM lender expects more growth opportunities in 2024 with the expansion of its team and product offerings. Most recently, Angel Oak brought on six account executives to serve markets including California, Indiana and Rhode Island, the firm announced.
Kim: Fannie Mae removed its explicit call for a recession in 2024 and now expects “below-trend growth.” At this point, how high is the risk for a recession?
Duncan: It was more of a marginal move from our perspective. There’s still a bunch of things that are highly correlated with recessions in the past that are still pointing in that direction.
There is an inverted yield curve, leading economic indicators have fallen for 21 months in a row, monetary aggregates are in decline and temporary work has turned down. There are seven or eight things that we watch that are still pointing that way, but the combination of all of them has not been enough to tip the market over. And with the Fed clearly making a shift in December, financial conditions eased significantly and that’s going to provide some support for them as well.
The market has gotten a little too enthusiastic in our view, so the change in our view on the Fed was only to change the number of cuts from three to four in 2024 with slow growth.
Kim: Compared to the beginning of January, more investors believe that an interest rate cut in May is more likely than a cut in March. Why do you think investors are throwing their hats in for a delayed rate cut by the Fed?
Duncan: I think that the markets were overenthusiastic, and a couple of Fed governors went on and walked it back, making statements along the lines of ‘let’s make sure we’re moving carefully.’ I think that was the primary thing.
Consumer spending numbers that came in at the end were quite strong, at least to the headline piece of that. On the flip side of that, consumer delinquencies for credit cards and auto loans are rising fairly quickly, which is a sign of stress in the consumer.
Kim: What is your expectation for the Fed’s timeline to cut benchmark rates?
Duncan: May, June, December and somewhere in the middle of there, where they may pause after the June meeting to see what the data looks like. It’s an election year, so it’s a little tricky to figure out exactly when they’ll do that.
Could they possibly move it up to March and May to get it out of the way of the election? They could, but I don’t think they’re going to be influenced that much by the election.
Kim:As mortgage rates increased, borrowers paid more points to buy them down. Do you think this will be a more permanent shift in the mortgage market even as rates stabilize?
Mark Palim: Part of what made it economical for the builders to offer rate buydowns was that the bond market was skeptical that the high rates would last long. So, the cost of buying down rates wasn’t as high as it might otherwise be from the perspective of borrowers and the builders subsidizing it with a buydown. I think it depends on the conditions and what the expectations are for rates.
Duncan: The 2% buydown saves you X amount of dollars monthly for as long as the market rates reach the level that you bought it down to. You have to make a judgment on how long rates will stay above that level for you to save that amount of money.
Kim: Overcapacity in the industry has resulted in lenders slimming down through layoffs and consolidations. How close are we from being done?
Duncan: I sat in on a meeting with about 30 small and midsized mortgage company CEOs where they said they made so much profit in 2020 through 2022, some of them are actually running at a loss knowingly to keep their best people.
Some are calibrating when they think volumes will pick up, how much of that pickup would be their business and what the cost is of carrying employees for this period. It may be the case that some of the employees would be willing to take a pay cut during that time period, knowing that the alternative is they lose their job.
When I was at the Mortgage Bankers Association, we had a model that worked pretty well to forecast what the downturn would be. Lenders held on to employment for six months. That was the window in which they wanted to see, ‘Will the trend change?’ so we don’t have to do layoffs, because it’s expensive to lay people off and rehire them.
One of the things that has undoubtedly changed is the advent of technology, centered around getting to the consumer faster. It’s a speed game for independent mortgage companies. They will do loans at a loss to get them done quickly, and keep the volume flowing through the business and covering their variable costs.
So, I think that those couple of alternative strategies and the advent of more technological development has changed the degree to which you see the volatility across the cycle.
Palim: The other thing I would add — two points — is that the projections for the size of the U.S. labor force are not vigorous. Growth is going to be substantially lower than it has been historically. You see pretty low levels of layoffs in the economy and questions about labor hoarding. So, it would make sense that given how hard it was to attract talent, I can see mortgage companies being reluctant to downsize unless they really have to.
Second point is, we do have a pickup in mortgage originations if rates and the economy go where they’re supposed to go next year and the following year.
California-headquartered LoanSnap was hit with a temporary order to cease and desist from Connecticut’s Department of Banking for “systemic” unlicensed mortgage loan origination activity.
Connecticut Banking Commissioner Jorge Perez alleged that LoanSnap violated the Truth in Lending Act (TILA) and Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA). But the crux of the commissioner’s findings focuses on unlicensed origination activities.
From at least August 29, 2022 to December 2, 2022, individuals who were not licensed as loan officers (LOs) in Connecticut acted as LOs by taking residential mortgage loan applications, soliciting Connecticut borrowers for mortgages and offering or negotiating terms of mortgages, according to the order issued earlier this month.
Unlicensed LOs made the first contact with a potential borrower by using purchased leads from lead generators, such as LendingTree, to make outbound calls to potential borrowers. These individuals also received inbound calls from individuals interested in obtaining mortgage loans, the order stated.
The commissioner alleged unlicensed LOs discussed the available products offered by SnapDoc based on the information obtained from the potential borrower. The individuals then made an initial determination as to whether there is a loan product available to the potential borrower.
Once an unlicensed LO deemed a potential borrower qualified for one of LoanSnap’s loan products based on the information gathered – via text, electronic mail, telephone call and additional verification documentation he or she required the potential borrower to submit – the unlicensed MLO then sent the file to a licensed LO.
The bulk of the origination work was performed by unlicensed LOs, generally titled as “sales development representatives” or “call center representatives,” according to commissioner Perez.
On LinkedIn, unlicensed individuals represented their job titles as a “mortgage loan officer” or included job descriptions including “prequalified inbound leads for the senior mortgage loan officers – over 100 calls per day” or “connection point between potential mortgage and refi-takers,” the order stated.
Connecticut’s Banking Department provided LoanSnap an opportunity to show compliance for the retention of its mortgage lender license in Connecticut before issuing the order but received a written response from the lender denying the allegations asserted in the compliance letter.
Perez directed LoanSnap to cease unlicensed LOs from taking any mortgage applications and for unlicensed LOs to disclose their Connecticut licensing status to a potential borrower, the regulator said.
A hearing – scheduled for March 14 – was granted to LoanSnap within 14 days following the lender’s receipt of the temporary order to cease and desist and a failure to request a hearing will result in the allegations deemed admitted, according to the order.
LoanSnap requested a hearing, according to Connecticut’s Department of Banking.
LoanSnap didn’t respond to HousingWire’s requests for comment.
The California-headquartered lender has 44 state licenses with 6 sponsored LOs, according to the Nationwide Multistate Licensing System (NMLS).
LoanSnap originated $3 million in production volume over the past year across 32 units, data from mortgage technology platform Modex showed.
In 2021, LoanSnap secured $30 million in series B financing led by True Ventures. Also participating in the funding included prior investors Baseline Ventures, Richard Branson’s Virgin Group, and MANTIS, according to the company’s previous release.
Looking for the best jobs for single moms? Being a single mom can be hard because you have to manage both your job and taking care of your kids. There are not many hours in a day, so it’s probably important to you to find a job that pays you a good income and lets…
Looking for the best jobs for single moms?
Being a single mom can be hard because you have to manage both your job and taking care of your kids. There are not many hours in a day, so it’s probably important to you to find a job that pays you a good income and lets you take care of your children.
The good news is that nowadays, there are many stay at home jobs for moms. This means you don’t have to follow a strict 9-to-5 schedule, making it easier to balance work and family. There are also many in-person jobs that allow you to have a better schedule to match your children’s schedule (such as when they are in school!).
Whatever you may be looking for, there are many flexible jobs for single moms. Continue reading below to learn more!
Best Jobs for Single Moms
Below is a quick summary of some of the best jobs for single moms.
Bookkeeper – You can organize the finances for businesses and have flexible working hours. With quick training, entry-level bookkeeping jobs might start at around $20 per hour, but with experience, you could earn a lot more.
Blogger – Bloggers get to work from home and make their own schedule, which is great for anyone, including single moms.
Teacher – Teaching probably aligns well with your child’s school schedule. Whether full-time, substitute, or part-time, teaching can be a good choice.
Virtual Assistant – This job involves helping businesses with tasks online, and you can typically make your own schedule.
Childcare provider – If you enjoy taking care of children, providing childcare for others while watching your own can, at the same time, be a way to earn money.
Below, you can learn about each of these, as well as many more of the best jobs for single moms.
1. Blogger
Blogging is one of the best jobs for single moms, and this is because you can work from home, make your own flexible schedule, and be your own boss; these are all reasons why I think it’s one of the best jobs for single moms who stay at home.
Plus, to start, you don’t need a lot of stuff – just a computer and internet.
I do this myself while taking care of my daughter, Marlowe. Blogging lets me travel whenever I want, make my own work schedule, earn good money, write about topics I like, and I really enjoy having a blogging business.
I started Making Sense of Cents in 2011, and since then, I’ve earned over $5,000,000 with my blog. When I began, I didn’t know it would become one of the best jobs for stay-at-home moms. Now, blogging lets me have a flexible schedule and spend lots of time with my daughter. It’s been a great way to balance work and family for me.
You can learn how to start a blog with my free How To Start a Blog Course (sign up by clicking here).
In this free course, you will learn:
Why you should start a blog today
How to decide what you should write about
How to create a blog (this will go over the actual step-by-step process)
How to make income from your blog
How to get people to read your blog
And more!
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Want to see how I built a $5,000,000 blog?
In this free course, I show you how to create a blog, from the technical side to earning your first income and attracting readers.
2. Day care (and bring your kid)
Finding a job that lets you bring your child along can save you childcare costs and watching other people’s kids is one way to do it.
You could start your own day care or find a job at a day care.
If you want to start a home day care, then you will want to check your state’s rules for home day cares, such as if you need a license. You’ll also need a safe space for children, as well as toys and games.
You could also try to find a job at a day care in your local area. Many day care centers allow you to bring your child, or they will give you a discounted rate to have your child attend the day care as well while you work.
Another option is to become a nanny or babysitter for a family that allows you to have your child there as well.
Starting a day care, working in one, or becoming a nanny/babysitter can be a win-win. You earn money and don’t worry about finding someone to watch your kid. Plus, your child gets to play and learn with other children.
Recommended reading: How to Make Money on Maternity Leave: 27 Real Ways
3. Sell printables
Selling printables is a great work-from-home business idea for single moms. This is because you can do this while your kids are sleeping or at school and earn passive income too!
Printables are digital files that people buy, download, and print themselves. These can include planners, calendars, wall art, grocery shopping checklists, weekly meal plans that someone puts on their fridge, and educational worksheets for kids.
You can sell your printables on websites like Etsy. This is a way to make money from home because you only need to make one digital file for each product, and you can sell it many times. You don’t have to print or send anything to your customers. You make the digital file; your customer buys it, downloads it, and takes care of the rest.
I recommend reading about this further at How I Make Money Selling Printables On Etsy to learn more about one of the best jobs for stay-at-home moms.
Do you want to make money selling printables online? This free training will give you great ideas on what you can sell, how to get started, the costs, and how to make sales.
4. Virtual assistant
As a single mom, you may be looking for a job that fits into your schedule. Working as a virtual assistant (VA) could be your answer, as you get to work from home and choose hours that work for you.
I’ve worked as a virtual assistant before, and I also have virtual assistants who help me with my business. Many parents have told me that a virtual assistant job is one of the best jobs for stay-at-home moms because it’s very flexible, and I agree!
A VA is someone who works from home as an assistant for someone else. Nowadays, many businesses can be operated from home, so it makes sense that an assistant can also work from home.
A virtual assistant can do tasks like managing social media accounts, formatting and editing content, scheduling appointments, handling travel plans, managing emails, and overseeing Facebook groups, among other things.
You can learn more at How Kayla Earns $10,000 Each Month From Home as a Virtual Assistant.
5. Freelance writer
If you’re a single mom looking for a job you can do from home, freelance writing might be a good fit for you. It’s a job where you write articles, blog posts, and sometimes even books for money. You don’t have to work in an office; you can write from anywhere, even your own kitchen table.
I have been a freelance writer for years, and it can be a great career choice for someone who wants to work from home.
When you’re just starting as a freelance writer, you might begin by writing articles that pay around $50 each or even more. However, the amount of money you can earn can vary a lot. You may be able to earn around $50,000 a year, and I know several freelance writers who are moms who make over $200,000 per year.
Many people are searching for freelance writers, and this job has a lot of opportunities for growth. It could be a great career to begin with.
Learn more at 14 Places To Find Freelance Writing Jobs – (Start With No Experience!).
6. Book author
If you love telling stories or sharing your knowledge, writing books could be an ideal job for you as a single mom. You get to create your own schedule and work from anywhere, even your home. Writing can be done at times that fit your schedule best, such as when your kids are at school or asleep.
For publishing your book, there are two options:
Traditional Publishing – You submit your manuscript to publishers. If a publisher likes your work, they will print, distribute, and market your book for you. In return, you’ll earn royalties from sales.
Self-Publishing – Platforms like Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing allow you to publish your book yourself. You control every aspect and get a higher percentage of the sales, but you also handle marketing and distribution.
The amount of money that you can make as a book author can vary by a lot. As a first-time author, getting published can be challenging, and earning substantial income takes time. If you self-publish and your book becomes popular, you could make a significant amount. But, this isn’t guaranteed.
Recommended reading: How Alyssa is making $200 a DAY in book sales passively
7. Graphic designer
Graphic design is a creative job that involves making artwork and visual designs. You might create designs for websites (like logos), advertisements, or printed materials like brochures and magazines.
Your work helps companies communicate with their customers through eye-catching and effective visuals.
This can be a great job for single mothers, as you may be able to find a work-from-home job as a graphic designer, or even start your own business where you can make your own flexible schedule.
Recommended reading: How To Make Money As A Digital Designer
8. Social media manager
Becoming a social media manager can be a great fit for single moms looking for remote work jobs.
Social media managers are in charge of social media accounts for businesses or people. Their job is to post on social media, reply to comments, and keep everyone interested.
This can include TikTok, Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook, X (formally known as Twitter), and more.
I have been a social media manager for companies, and it’s a great job that allows you to have a flexible schedule. That means you can work when it suits you – such as when the kids are at school or asleep.
9. Real estate agent
If you’re a single mom looking to balance work and family, becoming a real estate agent might be a great fit. As a real estate agent, you help people buy and sell homes.
To be a real estate agent, you just need a high school diploma and a license.
In 2021, the average pay for this job was $23.45 per hour, which is about $48,770 per year. But, there are many real estate agents who earn much more than this.
10. Proofreader
Proofreaders read documents and check for spelling, grammar, and punctuation errors, and they make sure everything is perfect before it gets printed or published online. They review books, articles, blog posts, social media content, newsletters, advertisements, and more.
If you want flexible work hours, proofreading is a good choice. Depending on your experience and the job’s complexity, you can earn between $20 and $50 per hour and more.
As a single mom, this job lets you balance work with looking after your kids. You can usually set your own schedule and work from home, which can make life a little easier.
You can read more at How To Become A Proofreader And Work From Anywhere.
There is also a FREE 76-minute workshop where you will learn more about how to become a proofreader with Proofread Anywhere. You can sign up for free here.
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This free 76-minute workshop answers all of the most common questions about how to become a proofreader, and even talks about the 5 signs that proofreading could be a perfect fit for you.
11. Bookkeeper
If you’re a single mom, becoming a bookkeeper might be a good option for you. Bookkeepers manage money records for businesses by keeping track of all the money that comes in and goes out.
If you work as an online bookkeeper, you could make about $40,000 or more per year. Typically, this involves managing finances for around 12 to 16 clients.
Being an online bookkeeper is great because you don’t need to be an accountant or have any prior experience. Also, virtual bookkeeping is a service that many people are looking for, so there’s a demand for it.
Recommended reading: Online Bookkeeping Jobs: Learn How To Get Started Today
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This free training will teach you what you need to know to become a virtual bookkeeper and make money from home.
12. Transcriptionist
As a transcriptionist, your job is to listen to audio or video files and type out what you hear into text. This is a task that you can do from home, making it a good option if you’re a single mom looking for flexible work.
One of the biggest benefits of this job is flexibility. You can usually choose when and how much you want to work (such as when your kids are sleeping or when they are at school). This can make balancing work and family much easier.
You need to be able to type quickly and accurately and attention to detail is important because you need to catch every single word.
Recommended reading: 18 Best Online Transcription Jobs For Beginners To Make $2,000 Monthly
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In this free training, you will learn what transcription is, why it’s a highly in-demand skill, who hires transcriptionists, how to become a transcriptionist, and more.
13. Customer service representative
Customer service representatives help people by answering questions and solving problems on the phone or online, which means they can sometimes work from home.
On average, customer service representatives earn around $35,868 a year as an average salary. This will change depending on where you work and how much experience you have.
Some large companies like Apple, Progressive, U.S. Bank, American Express, and U-Haul hire customer service representatives who can work from home. This means you can do the job from the comfort of your own house.
14. Data entry clerk
Data entry clerks enter information into databases or spreadsheets. They type things like numbers and names into computers to keep everything organized and make sure records are correct.
Jobs in data entry usually pay about $15 to $20 per hour.
Recommended reading: 15 Places To Find Data Entry Jobs From Home
15. Dog walker or pet sitter
If you’re a single mom looking for a job that fits around your schedule, you may want to look into becoming a dog walker or pet sitter. This type of job lets you choose when you work, which is great for making sure you have time for your kids.
As a dog walker, you walk dogs for people who are busy or away from home. You might take them around the neighborhood or to a park. If you’re a pet sitter, you take care of pets while their owners are out of town or at work.
The money you make can vary. Some jobs might pay you each day, like $15 to $25 an hour or a flat rate per day like $75. How much you make could depend on how many pets you care for and how long you spend with them.
Rover is a great company that you can sign up with in order to become a dog walker and pet sitter.
16. BabyQuip
If you’re a mom looking for a flexible side hustle, BabyQuip might be worth looking into. It’s a service where you can rent out baby gear like strollers and car seats to traveling parents – starting is simple: apply online, and BabyQuip will guide you through the process.
As a mom after all, you probably already have a lot of baby gear that you can rent out to make money with.
With BabyQuip, you make money by renting out items you already own or plan to invest in for rentals. Because parents travel, the demand for clean and safe baby gear is always there.
People using BabyQuip can make about $1,000 a month on average, and some even earn more than $10,000 each month.
On BabyQuip, you can rent items like cribs, strollers, car seats, high chairs, toys, bouncers, books, hiking packs, and many other things.
17. Teacher
As a single mom, teaching can be a great career for you. As a teacher, you typically work while your children are in school as well, after all.
Most teaching jobs follow a traditional school year calendar. This means you usually have summers off, along with school holidays, which can help you spend time with your kids.
18. Doula
If you’re a single mom looking for a job, you may want to become a doula. A doula supports women during childbirth, but your work can also extend to helping moms after the baby is born.
They are there to give comfort, encouragement, and knowledge during the pregnancy journey, labor, and the postpartum period.
19. Tutor
If you’re looking for part-time jobs for single moms, then tutoring may be an option to look into.
If you’re a single mom who knows a lot about a specific subject like math, science, or a language, becoming an online tutor could be a smart choice. You can schedule sessions around your life and help students learn. You pick when you work, which is perfect when you have kids at home. You might teach early mornings, afternoons, or even nights.
You will need a quiet place to work, a computer, and a good internet connection.
Income as a tutor ranges, and you may be able to earn $20+ an hour. And, if you specialize in something more advanced, like SAT prep or college courses, you could make more, even up to $50 per hour or more.
20. Photographer
As a single mom, becoming a photographer can be a rewarding job choice for you. With a camera and some practice, you can start taking photos that people will enjoy.
To begin, you need a decent camera. Don’t worry, it doesn’t have to be the most expensive one. You also need to learn about lighting and how to frame a good picture. There are lots of free tutorials online, such as on YouTube, if you want to learn more.
One of the best parts about photography is that you can make your own schedule. You decide when to book photo shoots, which can be great for balancing time with your kids. It’s possible to do photo shoots on weekends or during special events like weddings.
You can earn money by selling your photos online or by working with clients directly. Graduations, weddings, family portraits, and even pet photos can be great opportunities. Pricing varies depending on the job, but as you gain experience, you can charge more for your work.
As you grow, you can invest in better equipment and editing software to enhance the quality of your photos. This helps you stand out and can lead to more jobs and higher pay.
I know many moms who are successful photographers, and they love having a photography business.
Recommended reading: 18 Ways You Can Get Paid To Take Pictures
21. Instacart shopper
If you’re a single mom looking for a job that fits around your schedule, becoming an Instacart shopper might be a good choice. Instacart is a service that lets people order groceries online, and shoppers like you do the shopping and deliver the orders to their homes.
When you’re an Instacart shopper, you can set your own hours. This means you can work when it’s best for you, like when your kids are at school or sleeping. As a shopper, you get a payment card from Instacart to buy the groceries at the store.
Shoppers usually earn about $11 to $20 per hour. It’s important to remember that as an independent contractor, you will have extra costs like gas and vehicle maintenance that you need to think about when figuring out your earnings.
You can learn more at Instacart Shopper Review: How much do Instacart Shoppers earn?
22. Paralegal
As a single mom, you might find the role of a paralegal interesting. It’s a job where you work in a law firm or legal department, helping lawyers by preparing legal documents and doing research.
Your typical work hours are most likely Monday to Friday, fitting well with a school-week schedule.
Paralegals earn around $30,000 to $35,000 a year.
23. Dental assistant
As a single mom, if you’re looking for a job that lets you help people and have regular hours, you might like being a dental assistant. In this job, you work in a dentist’s office and help the dentist with patients.
Your tasks could include getting the tools ready, making sure patients are comfortable, and teaching them how to care for their teeth.
Your week would be busy, but you usually wouldn’t have to work nights or weekends. This is great because it matches up with your kids’ school schedule.
24. Travel agent
As a single mom, you may find that being a travel agent is a job that fits well with your life. It’s a job where you get to plan and book trips for others. You could work from home or an office.
Travel agents plan vacations, business trips, and getaways for clients and they find the best deals on flights, hotels, and fun activities.
The money you earn can vary because some agents get paid hourly and others get a commission, which is a part of the trip cost.
25. Nurse
As a single mom, you might worry about balancing work with taking care of your kids. As a nurse, there are jobs that can fit your life.
Some examples include:
School nurse – You can work the same hours your kids are in school. You’ll care for sick children, keep track of health records, and help with health checks.
Doctor’s office nurse – Working here can be less stressful. Usually, the hours are regular, Monday to Friday, so you can be home with your kids in the evenings and on weekends.
Home health care nurse – You’ll visit patients in their homes, which can give you a flexible schedule.
Public health clinics – These places look after the community’s health. Hours can be more regular, meaning you won’t have to do lots of night shifts.
Nurse educator – If you love teaching, this lets you work in a classroom instead of a hospital. You’ll have a steady schedule, perfect for family time.
26. Speech pathologist
A speech pathologist helps people with speech and language issues. You would work to improve their communication skills, which can be very rewarding.
You need a master’s degree in speech-language pathology and certifications vary by state.
Your work may take place in schools, hospitals, or private clinics. Some speech pathologists work from home providing virtual sessions.
27. Sleep consultant
Sleep is really important for the growth and well-being of babies, and it’s important for parents too. But sometimes, parents find it hard to make sure their child gets the sleep they need.
Pediatric sleep consultants are very helpful in solving children’s sleep problems, making it easier for families to have peaceful nights. If you really enjoy working with kids and want to make a positive difference in their lives, becoming a sleep coach could be a great career option.
I have personally learned from sleep consultants in the past, and I know many others who have hired a sleep consultant as well. These are typically moms who have firsthand experience with improving a baby’s sleep.
Learn more at How To Become A Sleep Consultant And Make $10,000 Each Month.
28. Run a dog treat bakery
If you enjoy cooking, starting a home bakery could be a way to make money from home. It allows you to use your cooking skills to create dog treats and earn some income.
You can make dog treats, cupcakes, cookies, cakes, and more.
Starting a dog treat bakery business could potentially help you earn an extra $500 to $1,000 a month or even more. It’s a niche small business idea that taps into the love people have for their pets.
I also recommend reading How I Earned Up to $4,000 Per Month Baking Dog Treats (With Zero Baking Experience!).
Frequently Asked Questions
Below are answers to common questions about how to find jobs for single moms.
What should a single mom do to handle financial stress?
I get it – as a single mom, you may have a lot of financial stress. It is hard to be a single mom and manage everything all on your own after all. To manage financial stress, I recommend trying to find jobs that pay well but also have flexible hours or work hours that match up with your children’s school schedule. Jobs that allow you to work remotely can also help lower your childcare expenses as you can work from home.
How to work as a single mom without help or childcare?
If you don’t have help or childcare, then you may want to work during hours when your kids are at school or asleep. This may include looking for jobs or employers who understand your situation and have flexible schedules or the ability to work from home.
What are the best work from home jobs for single moms?
I think one of the best ways for a single mom to make money is to work from home. This is because you may be able to make your own schedule, and you may be able to find a job that allows you to take care of your kids at the same time.
The best work-from-home jobs include jobs like virtual assistants, freelance writers, and bloggers.
What are jobs for single moms without a degree?
Jobs for single moms without a degree include administrative support, customer service positions, and sales roles as these jobs usually give on-the-job training.
How can a single mom go back to college and what degrees are best?
You can go back to college by looking for online degree programs, or classes when your children are at school, that fit your schedule. Popular degrees that balance well with being a single mom could be in fields like education, business, or healthcare, which have the potential for career growth.
Best Jobs for Single Moms – Summary
I hope you enjoyed this article on how to find the best jobs for single moms.
Whether you are looking for full-time or part-time jobs for single moms, there are many options that may fit what you need.
As you probably noticed above, jobs for single moms vary and include different types of work. Some jobs are creative, like writing or graphic design, while others are more regular, such as customer service or bookkeeping.
If you enjoy telling stories and writing, you could be a blogger or a freelance writer. If you’re good with organizing and numbers, you might like being a virtual assistant or a bookkeeper.
If you prefer doing your own thing, you could start a home day care or sell printables online.
As you can see, this is a long list of the best jobs for single mothers! There are many different job ideas that you could try that have a good work-life balance.
What do you think are the best jobs for single parents?
Housing demand is up and it’s time to track the spring housing data and see what the selling season will bring. As I always stress, we are working from the lowest bar ever with demand, so let’s add historical context to the data. But, even with mortgage rates higher this year than last year, demand is rising.
Purchase application data
As we get closer to the end of the first month of 2024, forward-looking purchase application data looks good. Once I make some holiday adjustments, we have eight weeks of a positive trend since mortgage rates fell from the 8% high, and as of now, the slightly higher rates we’ve seen recently haven’t impacted the data just yet. Historically, higher rates negatively impact the weekly purchase application data, and I will look for this over the next few weeks . But it’s very early in the seasonal demand timeframe for housing, so we will take it one week at a time. Purchase apps were up 8% week to week and still down 18% year over year. Last year at this time we got a boost in demand with rates heading toward 6%.
Weekly housing inventory data
Here is a look at last week:
Weekly inventory change (Jan. 19-26): Inventory fell from 506,414 to 503,233
Same week last year (Jan. 20-27): Inventory fell from 472,852 to 466,391
The inventory bottom for 2022 was 240,194
The inventory peak for 2023 is 569,898
For context, active listings for this week in 2015 were 938,453
Last week, we saw active inventory fall slightly week to week. This is common in January. We have had some positive purchase application data recently, and the pending home sales report came in as a beat last week. So, inventory falling looks normal. However, I would like to see the inventory bottom very soon and have a more traditional seasonal increase, rather than having a bottom in March or April.
New listings data
One of the more positive stories about housing inventory recently is that we found a bottom in new listings data last year, and we have been starting to grow new listings data for some time now on a year-over-year basis. It isn’t anything significant, but I will take it after what we have been through the last few years. This is something I talked about on CNBC recently.
Weekly new listing data:
2024: 44,921
2023: 42,843
2022: 47,713
Price cut percentage
Every year, one-third of all homes take a price cut before selling — nothing abnormal about that. However, this data line accelerates higher when mortgage rates rise, and demand gets hit harder. A perfect example was in 2022: when housing inventory rose faster, the percentage of price cuts rose faster as home sales crashed. That increase matched the slope of the inventory increase, and people needed to cut prices to sell their homes.
Toward the end of 2022, that marketplace changed as home sales stopped crashing and the market stabilized. So far this year, the price cut percentage data is still on pace to break below the lows we saw in 2023 in the spring. This data line is very seasonal, so what is occurring now is very normal.
This is the price-cut percentage for the same week over the last few years:
2024: 31.%
2023: 34.%
2022: 20.%
Mortgage rates and the 10-year yield
The 10-year yield is the key for housing in 2024. In my 2024 forecast, I have the 10-year yield range between 3.21%-4.25%, with a critical line in the sand at 3.37%. If the economic data stays firm, we shouldn’t break below 3.21%, but if the labor data gets weaker, that line in the sand — which I call the Gandalf line, as in “you shall not pass” — will be tested.
This 10-year yield range means mortgage rates between 5.75%-7.25%, but this assumes spreads are still bad. The spreads have been improving this year so much that if we hit 4.25% on the 10-year yield, we won’t see 7.25% in mortgage rates.
Last week, we got great news on inflation data, and we have been saying the inflation growth rate has slowed. However, in the economic game of rock-paper-scissors, it’s labor over inflation data, and the jobless claims data are too low, so the Fed hasn’t pivoted yet. Monday’s podcast will go over this topic more clearly.
The 10-year yield started last week at 4.14% and ended the week there. Mortgage rates ranged between 6.875% and 6.95%, ending the week at 6.90%. There is not much movement with the 10-year yield and mortgage rates. It’s wild to think that three to six month PCE inflation data is running below 2%, and mortgage rates are still this high. Remember, the Fed hasn’t pivoted and is still very restrictive.
The week ahead: Jobs, the Fed and home prices
It’s jobs week! So we will get the four labor reports: Job openings, ADP, jobless claims and the BLS jobs report. The Federal Reserve meets this week: we won’t see a rate cut this time but the key is the language they use in this meeting after the recent inflation data we saw. Also, the question and answers should be very interesting. We also have some home price data, which of course is a bit lagging from what is happening currently, but we will get those reports as well.
The past three years in the mortgage industry were cutthroat, with origination volume shrinking, and while things are looking better for 2024, lenders are still in a position where they must make bold moves to stem losses on the production side of the business, according to a report from Stratmor Group, a mortgage advisory firm.
More than half of mortgage executives who participated in Stratmor’s recent survey indicated that they do not believe their companies have turned the corner to become profitable when it comes to originations — excluding servicing.
About 85% of surveyed executives believed that their company was either not profitable or was roughly breaking even in production.
If lenders’ losses come in as expected during fourth-quarter 2023 and first-quarter 2024, it will represent eight consecutive quarters of losses for more than 350 independent mortgage bankers, said Jim Cameron, senior partner at Stratmor.
Independent mortgage banks (IMBs) and mortgage subsidiaries of chartered banks have collectively been in the red for six consecutive quarters. Most recently, they reported an average net loss of $1,015 on each loan they originated in third-quarter 2023 — doubling the reported loss of $534 per loan in Q2, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA).
While lenders have been aggressively cutting labor costs — their largest type of expense — it has not been enough to reduce per-loan production expense.
Even with massive cuts to gross production expenses (from $44 million per company in Q3 2020 to $18 million in Q1 2023), the cost per loan has increased to more $13,000 as loan production units dropped off dramatically during that period.
As of Q3 2023, total loan production expenses were $11,441 per loan, up slightly from $11,044 in the prior quarter.
“As we head into 2024, it is clear we still have excess capacity and lenders must continue to be disciplined and aggressive in managing staffing levels,” Cameron said.
While labor is the priority when it comes to reducing costs, cutting down lease costs and making use of the hybrid work model; reviewing vendor contracts; and weeding out plug-ins with high costs and low adoption rates are needed, according to the report.
The silver lining for IMBs, in general, are their strong cash balances, the report noted.
After bouncing between the $6 million to $8 million range in 2018 and 2019, average cash balances now stand at about $11.5 million as of Q3 2023. Lenders sold off much of their servicing portfolios in 2022 and 2023, and balances would have been much lower without these moves, according Cameron.
“After a very challenging 2023 and not much relief expected in 2024, lenders must have a renewed focus on cash flow forecasting,” Cameron said.
“As a foundational need, mortgage bankers must ensure that they have a robust mechanism in place to forecast short-term, intermediate, and long-term cash flows. And coming in a close second is the need to get razor sharp with financial and operational reporting and monitoring of key performance indicators (KPIs). Mortgage bankers must be highly skilled at examining both costs and performance across a variety of dimensions, including fixed versus variable and break-even-point analyses,” he added.
Nonqualified mortgage (non-QM) wholesale lender A&D Mortgage has obtained licenses to originate loans in Arkansas and Mississippi, the company announced on Thursday.
“This expansion is not only about growing our business; it’s about wholeheartedly bringing A&D Mortgage’s unwavering commitment to top-notch service, highly competitive rates, and tailored loan solutions to more Americans,” Max Slyusarchuk, CEO of A&D Mortgage, said in a statement.
In the past 45 days, A&D Mortgage has strategically entered six new states, including Arkansas, Maine, Montana, Oklahoma, Kansas and Mississippi, a spokesperson told HousingWire.
A&D Mortgage offers a wide range of products, including conventional loans, government loans, foreign national loans and non-QM loans, to cater to a diverse array of borrower needs.
In addition to its geographic expansion, A&D Mortgage is looking to strengthen its conventional lending business by adding seasoned professionals to its sales team.
Andrew Taylor, a former senior vice president of third-party originator (TPO) sales at JMAC Lending, and Bobby Frank, who served as SVP and director of wholesale lending at Citizens Bank since 1995, have joined A&D as senior vice presidents of wholesale lending and wholesale lending strategy, respectively. This strategic move aims to enhance the company’s conventional lending services.
A&D Mortgage also hired three new account executives: Tommy Williams, Betsy Marvin and Lori Welton. Together, they bring valuable conventional lending expertise from their previous roles at Citizens Bank.
In 2023, A&D Mortgage saw its origination volume top $2 billion, according to a spokesperson.
Editor in Chief Sarah Wheeler sat down with Matt VanFossen, CEO of Absolute Home Mortgage and Mortgage Automation Technologies, to talk about his unique view of the housing ecosystem and how it influences how he builds technology. Van Fossen not only heads a mortgage lender and a tech company, but is the president of the Mortgage Bankers Association of New Jersey and a board member of the Community Home Lenders of America.
Sarah Wheeler: You wear a lot of hats. How do all those different roles influence the technology you build?
Matt VanFossen: We build technology not only to sell but that we want to use. That culture resonates throughout our company and into our product lines. A differentiating factor of our tech is that lots of point of sale systems are built to faciitate loan officers with the business they already have. While we do that, we’re also focused on driving new business — from new clients but also from the relationships they already have.
We are focused on compliance and data capture at the top of the funnel, so we look at: how do we introduce loan officers not only to new technology, but to new business opportunities?
SW: What does that look like in very practical terms?
MVF: We realized that we needed to focus on the real estate agents our loan officers work with. Over the past 10 years, loan officers have become accustomed to forwarding their application right to the referral and taking the app, but what about their real estate agent counter-parties? Right now LOs have to go and remind agents and constantly be in front of them asking about referrals.
But a real estate agent has a limited amount of resources for elevating their referral. They might be driving down the road when they get a call or text message. Then they have to take whatever information they got and manually enter into their CMS. So we recoded the point of sale system so we can partner with agents on software. Now they have their own online application, but it’s not an application for a mortgage — it’s an application to buy or sell a house.
And now, anytime the agent uses those workflows, the loan officers are privy to that information. LOs can easily go in and see if they need to be preapproved and do that from their phone. So we reverse-engineered a lot of what we’ve built for loan officers and applied it to agents.
We basically created a massive collaboration system. From the first point of contact the customer has with the agent, they are being introduced to a digital ecosphere and they can remain in sthe ame portal all the way through the transaction. It’s the same portal to sign docs, eClose, get servicing information, even post-closing information. And if they ever need to apply for a new mortgage or refinance, they’re still living inside that port. So we’re keeping our customer from the first point of interaction all the way till the end of the real estate transaction and for the remainder of their lives inside of a single ecosphere.
SW: What was the “aha” moment that led to this development?
MVF: I hang out with a lot of LOs and agents, just in a social context, so the aha moment came when I was on a trip with friends. One is an agent and the other is an LO, and they both had to step away from the table like four different times, and I realized that the agent was getting new client referrals and had to pass that back to their team manually. I had completely missed this — that real estate agents don’t have an online application. An LO can text the link to their application portal, but not the agent. I realized we’ve been focusing for a decade on how to streamline this process for LOs but had abandoned our counterparties.
Because of my positions at a tech company, a mortgage company and in regulatory compliance, I have a view into all three points of this triangle — and I have developers that can go build it! Sitting on top of all three at the same time, I can see how they are all intimately intertwined, and I can test it with my own lender. I’m a user of this tech so I’m the mad scientist that’s experimenting on himself! I can jump in and code something, call an agent to have them come in and see it, then use with my own clients first. Then we can think about the enterprise version. It’s almost farm-to-table programming.
SW: So does that mean you only build versus buy?
MVF: No, because there are differet platforms that have some amazing features. We will build over buy in certain things but you can’t take over everything. We have some fabulous vendor tech partners in this industry. We’re focused on point of sale because it gives us control over the loan officer and agent and client experience, so we want to be in the driver’s seat for that.
But even with that mini-POS for agents, it’s not a full-blown CRM and they still need to use their CRM vendors, who will be better at journey campaigns, for example. And we work with awesome loan origination systems like Encompass to maintain compliance and a database. We can’t conquer every avenue so for us it’s about strategy and where we can get the biggest lift with our own tech and then shop the marketplace for strategic partners.
SW: What keeps you up at night? Security?
MVF: I am constantly thinking about this and how I’m not only responsible for cybersecurity for my various companies but also now my point of sale. But we’re very unique and the architecture we built for it was not possible more than a year ago. So rather than having two databases — one POS database where people apply online and then that application goes into another database where you hold that PII inside of it, and you synch those through an API — we don’t do it that way. We have single source of truth.
When an application comes in, or any of the Realtor referrals come in, they all get logged immediately into ICE’s Encompass. We don’t have a database — it all instantaneously, through an encrypted API transaction, as soon as the application hits it goes into Encompass. So there’s only one place and location and all of the loan data resides in that. So we are now more secure than ever because ICE has phenomenal information security. So what we do is put a customization layer on top of it. It’s a highly configurable, easy-to-use user interface that shares a database, rather than maintaining two databases. And that solves a lot of cybersecurity issues.
The other thing that keeps me up is mortgage rates and when we’ll see quantitative easing. What the industry really needs is to get some tailwind into the market.
When you look at the three things I’m involved in — I’m running a lender, I’m running a FinTech and I’m in advocacy. What solves all of that is a little bit lower interest rates. That will strengthen the housing market and make sure that independent mortgage bankers have stability in extremely volatile times. That ensures the tech company will continue to innovate, and all of those things together is going to help consumers, especially low to moderate income consumers.