Chrisman Commentary - Daily Mortgage News

10.14.26 Credit Scoring; Owen Lee on MBA; Restrictive Financial Conditions

The mortgage industry is increasingly adopting VantageScore 4.0 as FHFA reforms expand its use in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac lending, potentially improving credit access

10.13.26 National Storylines; nCino's Casey Williams on Process Friction; Incoming Data

The mortgage industry is balancing technological optimism with growing concerns about privacy, accountability, and leadership. As AI tools like AddyAI demonstrate the pot

10.12.26 MBA National Storylines; Saul Ewing's Jason McElroy on the Telephone Consumer Protection Act; Bond Markets Closed

The housing and mortgage industry faces a mix of long-term opportunity, near-term affordability challenges, and economic uncertainty. With 132.7 million occupied U.S. hou

10.9.26 Economic Strength; Floify's Maggie Swanson on Customizable Loan Apps; Prepayment Data

While U.S. stock market strength remains concentrated in the highly profitable "Magnificent Seven" tech companies, mortgage demand continues to weaken, with September 202

10.8.26 Trivia Night; Gather Markets’ Wayne Brown on CRA-Eligible Loans; Pushing Rates

With about 10,000 Americans turning 62 each day, companies should consider offering HECM products, especially as mortgage origination volumes are expected to decline roug

10.7.26 Headlines Into Annual; Ralo's Arjun Lalwani on Anthrotech Intersections; Fundamentals and Valuations

Ahead of next week’s National MBA conference, the mortgage industry is seeing heightened uncertainty, including layoffs, shifting Fannie/Freddie market-share dynamics, we

10.6.26 Uncertain Outlook; Polly’s Adam Carmel on PollyOS/Hedge; Rate Pressures

Mortgage markets face a challenging outlook, with industry uncertainty, lender/vendor tensions, and persistent inflationary pressures from oil, deficits, AI-related debt

10.5.26 Demographics and Financial Literacy; Mortgage Education Institute's Andrew Conner on CE; MBS Issuance

There is a significant opportunity for lenders to expand the pool of potential homebuyers by better understanding and addressing the financial anxiety, overwhelm, and dis

10.2.26 Industry Chatter; Eris Innovations' Geoffrey Sharp on Options; Poor Payrolls Friday

U.S. home prices have far outpaced inflation since 2011 while income gains have been more uneven, highlighting worsening affordability and inequality, as FHFA pursues cha

10.1.26 Fourth Quarter Changes; Gateless' Mike Brown on Automated Decisioning; Fed Chatter Abounds

Q4 opens with heightened uncertainty and industry change, from accelerating lender/company transitions and New York Life Investment Management taking majority control of

9.30.26 Industry Mailbag; Fairway Independent's Steve Jacobson on Pivots and Presence; Sell First

We start by looking at three unresolved issues: the tradeoff between housing affordability and protecting existing homeowners, potential ethical concerns around choosing

9.29.26 Hispanic Homeownership; Maxwell’s John Paasonen and PLACE’s Chris Stuart on Housing Ecosystems; Selling Pressures

Despite a record-low Hispanic poverty rate of 13.9 percent in 2025, down from 21.9 percent in 1973, Hispanics remain disproportionately affected by poverty and continue t

9.28.26 Conference Activities; Falcon Capital Advisors' Sam Valverde on Rate Environment; Buydown Attractiveness

Treasury yields’ surge to nearly two-decade highs increasingly looks like a structural repricing rather than a temporary selloff, as hawkish Fed policy, resilient data an

9.25.26 NEXA's Mike Kortas on Rumors; Spring EQ's Reno Heine on Non QM; Talking Rates Up or Down

As NEXA has grown it has been under a microscope by those outside the company. Questions range from its compensation model and recruiting practices to its approach to ser

9.24.26 Servicing Primer; KBW's Bose George on Market Dynamics; Sell Off Sell Off

Focusing on traditional refinances is a strategic mistake for the mortgage industry, as shifting demographics like aging Boomers and wealth transfers demand that servicer

9.23.26 Philanthropy and Appraisals, Castor Financial's Brooks Champagne on Account Executive Compensation; MSR Warning Signs

Major financial contributions from philanthropic organizations and corporate leaders, such as Freedom Mortgage CEO Stan Middleman's $50 million gift to Penn Medicine

9.22.26 Builder Business; BSI's Larry Goldstone on Servicing; Fed Path Forward

To protect the valuation of existing subdivision inventories, homebuilders like Lennar are increasingly relying on costly interest rate buy-downs instead of price cuts to

9.21.26 Treasury Price Discovery; Balerion’s Naren Krishna on AI Underwriting; Economic Calendar Ahead

Led by Chair Kevin Warsh, the Federal Open Market Committee raised the federal funds rate to 3.75–4 percent amid stubborn inflation, causing the 10-year Treasury yield to

9.18.26 MBS Portfolio Convexity; Cinchy's J. Paul Haynes on Cybersecurity; Further Fed Reaction

Ginnie Mae’s MBS portfolio surpassed $3 trillion in August 2026 as issuance remained strong, while rising mortgage rates have left roughly 98% of 30-year borrowers withou

9.17.26 Fed Decisioning; Mortgage Nerd Group’s Denise Donoghue on Broker Channel; Resilient Economic Data

The Fed’s anticipated 25-basis point hike to 3.75%–4.00% was less consequential than its increasingly hawkish outlook, with 16 of 18 policymakers projecting at least one