DM: Mortgage originators have been decimated. They’re losing both purchase mortgages, down 30%, and they’ve lost 100% of refi [refinancing]. We’re going to see a consolidation in mortgage origination that will be pretty transformational. Within the single-family rental space, you’re going to see the smaller people fall by the wayside, because it’s so hard to access houses the way they’ve done, and the relatively low level of unemployment is going to put a lot of pressure on their ability to service the assets. I expect to see more consolidation in single-family rentals, with the big guys getting bigger over time. Title insurance companies are struggling right now. Other vendors to that space are struggling. I think you’re just going to see—across the whole homeowner­ship ecosystem—massive consolidation. 

Eoin Treacy's view

Banks are firing mortgage personnel at an accelerating pace. That is a sure sign business has dried up and they are not willing to carry dead weight. The longer rates stay high for, the more likely a deep recession becomes. Lending standards did not ease very much ahead of the pandemic surge so there are fewer stressed owners but some softness can be expected.