Any food science major will tell you that the difference between jelly and jam is that jam has chunks of fruit in it; jelly is strained. There is also a difference in costs in our biz. Here in Honolulu at the MBAH conference, costs are part of the discussion, and sure enough, there is a map of the mortgage closing costs by state. There is also a difference in denial rates, state by state, for a variety of reasons, so the National Association of Realtors® recently examined data from 2023 to give homebuyers some information as to where denial rates are the highest and lowest, and which groups they most impact. The best (Easiest? Most qualified borrowers?) states to buy in, according to the study, are Alaska, North Dakota, and Nebraska, which all had drastically lower denial rates. The toughest are a trio of Southern states: Mississippi (rejecting 19% of all 2023 mortgage applications), Louisiana (18%), and West Virginia (15%). (Today’s podcast can be found here and this week’s is sponsored by TRUE. TRUE cuts time to critical loan events from days to minutes by using background AI workers to instantly validate data and automate underwriting decisions. Today’s has an interview with TRUE’s Steve Butler on the next evolution of “background AI” in mortgage tech: from cutting decision times to minutes, enabling instant pre-approvals, exposing the hidden costs of partial AI solutions, and what’s ahead in reshaping the future of lending.)

Products, Software, and Services for Brokers and Lenders

Buying a new home before selling the current one is a challenge, especially when a borrower’s down payment is tied up in their current home or investments. Flyhomes, a wholesale lender, offers the Buy Before You Sell program that enables loan officers and their borrowers to access up to 105% total LTV by leveraging equity from both their current and future homes, covering the full down payment and even closing costs. This solution eliminates the upfront cost barrier and gives borrowers the flexibility to move first with confidence. Over the past 10 years, Flyhomes has helped 5,000+ borrowers and enabled loan officers to close 1.2 more loans per month on average. Flyhomes is now offering 25 bps off its Bridge Loan origination fees, a limited time offer that ends June 30. Book a call to lock it in today!

Leading Lenders: Risk, Reward, and Reinvention dives into how industry leaders are embracing change, overcoming challenges, and driving innovation in today's market. Produced by HousingWire in partnership with Polly, this exclusive docuseries showcases the people and platforms changing how pricing, automation, and strategy intersect. Each episode takes you inside a different lending organization to share their unique perspective on the industry and how they are raising the bar. Episode 3 features Brian Permutt of ResiCentral, who reveals how the company tripled its volume from 2023 to 2024, without adding a single person to the lock desk. This wasn’t luck; it was the result of a laser focus on automation, efficient tech integration, and strategic use of the Polly PPE. Brian explains how ResiCentral built its operations to scale, emphasizing the importance of accuracy and their “speed with a smile” philosophy: view the episode.

Cook County Funds Are Back! Land Home Financial Services, Inc., the servicer for the Cook County Down Payment Assistance (DPA) Program, is excited to announce that on June 12th, the Cook County Board of Commissioners approved $8.6 million in new program funding! This is a great opportunity to help more borrowers achieve homeownership in Cook County, Illinois. The program is available to eligible homebuyers purchasing homes in Cook County, Illinois and provides assistance equal to 5% of the first mortgage amount (up to $25,000). The program is officially open, and LHFS will begin accepting new rate locks beginning Tuesday, June 24th. If you are a lender or mortgage broker and would like to offer this program to your clients, please contact Elizabeth Robertson, VP of Community Lending at LHFS.

PHH Mortgage is excited to announce the recent expansion of its EquityIQ® Product Suite. Expanded LTV tables are now offered under PHH’s newest product, EquityIQ Apex, and additional states have been added to the list of eligible states. The full suite of EquityIQ® products are available through the Company’s wholesale network and marketed under PHH’s reverse mortgage product brand, Liberty Reverse Mortgage. Learn more here.

“Kick-Off Summer with June Specials from LoanStream a DBA of OCMBC Inc. with up to 75BPS Price Improvement on Non-QM & FHA/VA! Here for a limited time for loans locked through June 30th, 2025 (restrictions apply). Non-QM: 25 BPS Non-QM (all programs except DSCR 5-8) & Closed-End Seconds June Special, 75 BPS Improvement when combined with Non-QM Select. FHA/VA: 25 BPS Price Improvement on ALL FHA/VA (Excludes CalHFA & Jumbo, can be combined with SELECT), Get 60 BPS when combined with our Select Government Specials. 37.5 BPS FHA/VA Price Improvement Special, Eligible Loans with 600 – 679 FICOs, cannot be combined with Select or any other Special (excludes CalHFA, Jumbo and DPA). Plus: Join our NEW WEBINAR: Beyond Prime – When Prime Fails, Non-QM Prevails. Registration is now open so don’t miss out on this informative webinar on creative financing options.”

“Looking to simplify pricing scenarios for your borrowers? Maxwell QuickPricer empowers loan officers to shop, compare, and share pricing scenarios all within Maxwell Point of Sale. An industry first, QuickPricer gives borrowers quick answers while LOs gain a competitive edge with faster, smarter pricing. QuickPricer integrates with all major PP&E’s and insurance providers, empowering your team to move from quote to application in seconds. Want to learn more? Let us know and we’ll show you what Maxwell can do for you and your borrowers.”

You’ve probably heard the buzz: automation, efficiency, faster loan processing. But most lenders are still stuck with legacy workflows, endless clicks, and tech that doesn’t talk to each other. In this on-demand webinar, you’ll see how US Mortgage Corporation streamlined their operation using LenderLogix LiteSpeed + Encompass® automation. No fluff, no hypotheticals. This is what automation-first lending looks like.

The Chrisman Marketplace, a centralized hub for vendors and service providers across the mortgage industry, is up and going. The site features third-party providers offering powerful partnerships and solutions driving innovation in the space. We’ll be adding new vendors daily, so check back often to see what’s new. To reserve your place or learn more, contact us at info@chrismancommentary.com.

Conventional Conforming News, Surveys, and Changes

Following national home price growth of 5.3% in 2024, a panel of more than 100 housing experts forecasts home price growth to average 2.9% in 2025 and 2.8% in 2026, according to the Q2 2025 Fannie Mae (FNMA/OTCQB) Home Price Expectations Survey (HPES), produced in partnership with Pulsenomics, LLC. The panel’s latest estimates of national home price growth represent revisions from last quarter’s expectations of 3.4% for 2025 and 3.3% for 2026, as measured by the Fannie Mae Home Price Index (FNM-HPI). As part of this quarter’s survey, panelists were also asked whether they expect home price growth in the 20 largest metro-area housing markets will underperform or overperform the national average in the next 12 months, as well as the probability that national year-over-year home price growth will turn negative at any point through the end of 2026.

Fannie published the results of its May 2025 National Housing Survey® (NHS), which includes the Home Purchase Sentiment Index® (HPSI), a measure of consumer sentiment toward housing. Month over month, the HPSI increased 4.3 points to 73.5. Year over year, the HPSI is up 4.1 points. For more information, access the latest data release or the key indicator data file.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have released major updates to their Selling Guides that overhaul how Interested Party Contributions (IPCs), lender incentives, and builder forward commitments are treated in purchase transactions. These revisions impose stricter standards, particularly for affiliated relationships and indirect financial contributions, and may reshape how lenders and builders structure incentives.

United Wholesale Mortgage (UWM) announced the return of its Conventional 1% Down product, enabling homebuyers to secure a home with a down payment of just 1 percent provided by the borrower. Effective immediately, this product is available up to the conforming loan limit for homebuyers with an income at or below 80 percent of the Area Median Income (AMI), a 97 percent Loan-to-Value (LTV) ratio and a FICO score of 620 or higher. When a borrower puts down 1 percent, UWM will contribute an additional 2 percent, up to $7,000, giving the borrower a total of 3 percent for their down payment.

“One of the biggest hurdles to buying a home is the down payment, and we’re removing that barrier with this product,” said Mat Ishbia, President and CEO of UWM. “This program is a win for borrowers and will get them into a home sooner with less money out of their pocket. This gives independent mortgage brokers a significant competitive advantage both with their clients and real estate agents this purchase season.” The down payment assistance program allows borrowers to save money they could instead use for expenses such as furniture, move-in costs, repairs or even buying down their interest rate for long-term savings. This product was last offered in May of 2024, when UWM provided an additional 2 percent contribution, up to $4,000. Additional information on Conventional 1% Down can be found here.

Capital Markets

As markets await this week’s Federal Open Market Committee meeting, we (and that includes the Fed) are all navigating a complex web of inflation dynamics, policy uncertainty, and geopolitical shocks. Despite the Federal Reserve signaling a continued hold on rates, Chair Powell is under pressure to provide clarity on what might ultimately prompt a shift in monetary policy. President Trump’s renewed push for tariffs, coupled with tighter immigration proposals, has heightened expectations of upward inflation pressure, even as recent data shows core inflation moderating. However, with economic growth stable and the labor market only gradually cooling, markets now anticipate no rate cuts before September. Investors will be watching for updated economic projections from the Fed, the first since Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariff proposals, to gauge how policymakers interpret the evolving trade and inflation landscape.

Recent economic indicators have offered some measure of relief. Consumer prices in May rose just 0.1 percent, while core goods prices, expected to be most sensitive to tariffs, actually declined 0.4 percent. Services inflation also eased, and producer prices underperformed forecasts, suggesting a weakening in firms’ pricing power as consumers tighten their wallets. These trends point toward continued progress on the Fed’s preferred inflation measure, the PCE deflator. Encouragingly, sentiment data improved alongside the soft inflation prints. The NFIB Small Business Optimism Index rebounded, and the University of Michigan’s Consumer Sentiment Index saw a sizable increase. Still, questions linger. Many firms are expected to pass along more tariff-related costs once existing inventory runs out, meaning the inflation battle may not be over. For now, however, stable labor market data and subdued price pressure support the Fed’s cautious stance.

Meanwhile, financial markets displayed resilience in the face of escalating geopolitical tensions. Following Israel’s overnight strike on Iran, traditional safe-haven assets like gold rose and stocks dipped, but there was no broad flight to safety. Instead, the market followed a now-familiar pattern: initial shocks followed by bargain hunting and recovery. The S&P 500 remains near record highs, helped by easing inflation data and better-than-expected sentiment readings.

Deeper structural concerns persist, however. Initial jobless claims have ticked up, with continuing claims reaching levels not seen since late 2021, potentially signaling labor market softening. At the same time, governments are paying the highest yields in decades to borrow long term, reflecting growing investor demands for inflation compensation amid deficit concerns and central bank caution. While short-term sentiment has improved, the longer-term outlook remains clouded by volatile trade policy, persistent fiscal pressures, and shifting global power dynamics.

This week’s calendar highlight is the monetary policy decision from the Federal Open Market Committee on Wednesday, which will include an updated SEP, along with the usual statement and press conference with Chair Powell. Internationally, there will be central bank decisions from Japan, Chile, Brazil, Sweden, England, Switzerland, and more (only Riksbank and SNB are expected to cut rates by 25-basis points, with the rest unchanged). Events of interest on the domestic economic calendar include import/export prices (May), retail sales (May), industrial production/capacity utilization (May), business inventories (April), homebuilder sentiment (June), housing starts and permits (May), and leading indicators (May) on Friday.

Today brings a very light calendar consisting of just the New York Fed manufacturing index for June () at 8:30am, and several Treasury auctions that will be headlined by $13 billion reopened 20-year bonds. We begin the week with Agency MBS prices roughly unchanged from Friday’s close, the 2-year yielding 3.97, and the 10-year yielding 4.44 after closing last week at 4.42 percent, down 9-basis points over the course of the week.