FOOTHILL RANCH, CA—Even with interest rates rising, anyone with a home mortgage should check with their lender to find out what their options are for a better rate, loanDepot's chief retail production officer Dan Hanson tells GlobeSt.com. With the interest-rate climate changing, we spoke with Hanson—who is responsible for developing the firm's future enterprise growth strategy and the platform for its retail-sales production team while leading the sales organization through further expansion and an increased scope of origination opportunities nationwide—about its effects on the home-loan industry and underwriting standards now and into the future.

GlobeSt.com: How do you see the home-loan industry changing as stock tightens, prices rise and interest rates creep up?

Hanson: The reality is that rates are moving up slowly. We're probably back to the same rates as December 2013 on a 30-year fixed mortgage at about 4.25%, which is still a fantastic interest rate. The rates moving up has a beneficial effect in one way: there are more alternatives to give us a market for product development. When rates are low, there's no interest from the private sector in mortgage alternatives. It's great that we have Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the FHA, but as rates move up, there is more interest from the private sector for mortgage lending, which may provide motivation for more products than what we currently have.