Overheard last night in Northern California: “’The Empire Strips Back’” is the best parody show I’ve ever seen.” I only mention that because life goes on despite a drop in confidence in parts of the banking system, mortgage rates being sticky, and our industry continuing to grapple with over-capacity. Let’s not forget inflation, sometimes from surprising sources. Recently we saw egg prices skyrocket due to a flue wiping out large numbers of laying chickens. Now, in time for Easter, strawberries, a $3 billion business in California and a staple in many fruit salads, have had torrential rains jeopardize the harvest in much of the state. Many strawberry fields in California are now underwater. There are 40,000 acres of strawberries planted in the state, and it accounts for about 90 percent of U.S. production. The damage is likely to wipe out some acreage (it costs $30,000 to grow an acre of strawberries) and will likely cause further increases in the price for consumers. A 12-ounce package of strawberries goes for $3.17, already rather high following an 8.7 percent price jump last year and a 41 percent increase in 2021. (Today’s podcast can be found here and this week is sponsored by Black Knight, Inc. As a premier provider of innovative, high-performance software, data and analytics for mortgage and home equity lending and servicing, Black Knight, Inc. is transforming the mortgage industry through its best in class solutions. Hear an interview with Jay Beitel of Polunsky Beitel Green on the upcoming Consumer Finance Protection Bureau (CFPB) case before the Supreme Court of the U.S.)
Source: Mortgage News Daily
