“I won the lottery for a million dollars yesterday, so I decided to donate a quarter of it to charity. I now have $999,999.75.” One can make jokes about charities, or about people and companies in residential lending, but giving (and charity) is serious, and helps us keep our focus on things that matter: people in need. For example, there’s Fairway Independent’s Fairway Cares and contribution to the American Warrior Initiative (AWI). UHM… Several years ago, Southwest General Health Center received a $1.25 million donation from The Cosgrove Family Foundation to support the hospital's Maternity Unit renovation and expansion project, and in subsequent years has received much more. Stan Middleman, the CEO of Freedom Mortgage? Philadelphia-based Penn Medicine received a $50 million gift that will establish the Middleman Center at Penn Medicine and launch a new fund. “The Middleman Fund is designed to support scientific discoveries at Penn Medicine, including early-stage research in cancer, autoimmune diseases, and infectious diseases. And this is after a 60 second DuckDuckGo search; I am sure there are countless more examples. (Today’s podcast can be found here. This week’s ‘casts are sponsored by Spring EQ, the home equity experts. See why Spring EQ is the clear choice in home equity, helping over 150,000 homeowners access almost $15 billion in equity. Today’s has an interview with Castor Financial’s Brooks Champagne on innovative Account Executive (AE) compensation plans and how AEs can build a team without management duties.)
Broker and Lender Products, Software, and Services
Affordability pressure doesn't disappear when the loan closes. It comes back later as repurchase risk. Your borrowers are stretched, leaving less room for errors in the file. Truework, a Checkr company, verifies income, employment, and assets before you close, replacing error-prone processes with fast, automated reports pulled directly from sources. Lenders see up to 50 percent cost savings on verifications, with faster turn times and higher accuracy. Learn more.
Automating individual tasks isn’t the same as transforming mortgage operations. JazzX AI digital co-workers coordinate complex decisions end-to-end across processing, underwriting, QC, and servicing. Every finding is reasoned against your guidelines and overlays, continuously reassessed as new information arrives, and tied to the specific policy, document, and data that produced it. Lenders are using JazzX to drive 8x higher processor output, reduce defects by 80 percent, and move 75 percent of loans through touch-free. Book a demo to see how JazzX delivers lower cost per loan, better quality, and faster closing.
“In today’s competitive mortgage market, correspondent lenders need more than just an investor. They need a trusted partner with the products, execution capabilities, service, and stability to help them succeed. That partner is Newrez Correspondent. By partnering with Newrez, lenders gain access to a comprehensive product suite designed to meet the diverse needs of today’s borrowers. In addition to all Agency offerings, Newrez provides a broad range of non-agency solutions, including non-QM (bank statement & 1099 income qualification, DSCR loans, asset-based qualification, non-warrantable condos and condotels.), AUS Jumbo, MedPro, and Closed-End Seconds. Newrez also provides Delegated and Non-Delegated along with Best Efforts, Bulk, and AOT delivery methods. For lenders interested in Co Issue: Quick Launch, SMP, CIX, CRX, and PIIT are available. At Newrez Correspondent, we are committed to making it easier for our partners to succeed. To learn more about how Newrez can help your organization compete and win in today’s market, contact us here.”
CIC Credit is keeping a close eye on the changing credit-scoring landscape. For lenders, understanding these changes means looking beyond the scores themselves to consider how new scoring models could affect credit workflows, borrower eligibility, and day-to-day operations. That’s one reason I’ve been following CIC Credit. CIC has been working closely with lenders around the evolving credit environment, helping them understand what’s changing and prepare for what comes next. Whether you’re thinking about VantageScore 4.0, FICO® Score 10T, or simply how your credit operation needs to adapt, having the right partner matters. CIC Credit brings the experience, resources and responsive support lenders need to navigate changes with greater confidence. If you are going to MBA Annual26 in Chicago or Experian’s Vision 2026 in San Antonio, be sure to connect with the CIC Credit team. Just reach out to sales@ciccredit.com to request a meeting during the show.
CLOSE MORE with Specials from LendingPros! September Specials are here for a limited time with up to 25 BPS Price Improvement on non-QM and PRIME Loan Programs. Includes 25 BPS on all non-QM programs including Closed End Seconds and DSCR 5-8 and our Prime programs, includes 12.5 BPS on Alt Agency, ARMS and DPA programs (excluding Jumbos and CalHFA). Specials are for loans locked 9/1 – 9/30, 2026. Contact your LendingPros AE to learn more about these limited time specials.
“Last week at NMN Digital Mortgage Conference, our CI&T team demoed how lenders can stay ahead in the lightning-fast AI era. Yes, CI&T custom builds full tech stacks for big lenders, but for the rest of the mortgage market, we rolled out MIL (Mortgage Intelligence for Loan Operations), an AI-powered UX over your existing tech stack that gives loan production (and servicing!) teams one personalized workspace. We build/integrate it custom for your operation in 60-90 days, and then you own it…no SaaS fees ever. Day-to-day, your MIL AI identifies what matters most to production (or servicing!) teams, guides each user to their next-best action, and it works across every system while keeping underlying systems updated. We’d love to show you how fast it works and goes live. Please reach out to Tim Von Kaenel and Dawn Svedberg to connect.”
What to Know About UAD 3.6
This Commentary has warned readers of the approaching changes to the appraisal landscape for months. Yes, the focus is on conventional conforming loans, but there is a ripple effect to government and non-Agency loans.
This topic was buzzing around the ACUMA conference this week, along with what lenders should be doing about UAD 3.6… besides just bracing for it. I caught up with Class Valuation's EVP Mark Walser, who's tracked hundreds of appraisals moving through the new format over the past six weeks. His take: appraisers are already reporting higher fees, since the added inspection requirements and new report format are extending completion time. Lenders should plan to disclose that now and prepare borrowers for longer turnarounds, especially over the next 90 days.
Mark's advice? “Lean harder into Hybrid Appraisals. Appraisers have to capture more property data under UAD 3.6 than 2.6, and Class's process has already been built to that standard for years, so hybrid orders skip the added time. They're also priced lower than a traditional UAD 3.6 appraisal, which matters more by the week as fees rise. Ignore these options at your own risk.” Thank you, Mark.
STRATMOR on Succession Planning
What does a delayed building permit have to do with succession planning? Quite a bit, according to STRATMOR’s Amanda Gibson. In the firm’s latest Insights Report, Amanda draws a surprising parallel between building a custom home several states away and preparing a mortgage company for its next chapter in her article, “The Permit Problem: What Building a House Is Teaching Me About Succession Planning.” Even when the big decisions are made, one overlooked dependency can bring everything to a standstill. For mortgage company owners, succession planning often looks complete on paper, but may not hold up when it’s actually tested. Amanda explores the importance of building leadership depth, developing (rather than simply naming) a successor, diversifying personal wealth, considering multiple paths for transition, and communicating the plan before it’s needed. Read the full September Insights Report.
Residential News
KB Homes released its third quarter earnings, and a warning. "We are operating in a housing market that continues to be challenging, with conditions weakening since our June earnings report. Higher mortgage interest rates have further pressured affordability and, together with geopolitical uncertainty and broader economic headwinds, have caused many prospective buyers to be more cautious on purchasing a home," said Jeffrey Mezger, Executive Chairman.
DRB Group announced the planned January 2027 launch of two mortgage joint ventures to strengthen and expand the company's customer offering across its DRB Homes' national footprint: DRB Mortgage, in partnership with Acrisure Mortgage in the east, and DRB Home Loans, in partnership with Alta Home Lending in the west. “The initiative reflects the vision of DRB Group President and Chief Executive Officer, Ronny Salameh, to pair DRB's high-quality builder brands: DRB Homes and DRB Elevate 55+ with a mortgage experience built around transparency, execution, and customer care.”
WFG Enterprise Solutions’ proprietary Valutrust technology platform is ready to support the transition to Encompass Partner Connect (EPC) ahead of the December 31 deadline to move away from legacy Encompass service ordering. Lenders and valuation providers can use the platform with Valutrust Solutions’ appraisal management services or independently, while maintaining their existing provider relationships.
Watermark TPO, a division of Watermark Capital, Inc., and Trio today announced a partnership bringing Trio’s Link homeownership solutions to Watermark TPO’s wholesale partner network through the Advantage Home Purchase Program. “The Advantage Home Purchase Program is designed for mortgage professionals who encounter purchase customers whose traditional mortgage path cannot move forward. Approved Watermark TPO partners can introduce a clearly defined alternative homeownership path for customers who may meet Trio’s independent program requirements.”
Capital Markets
There’s no reason for rates to drop, unless inflation or the economy start to slow. Put another way, persistent fiscal concerns and heavy debt issuance are expected to maintain upward pressure on long-end Treasury yields, largely offsetting the influence of a hawkish Federal Reserve. The Fed's policy shifts to combat headline inflation contrast with its public silence regarding the soaring federal deficit, which is on track to reach $2 trillion this fiscal year. While officials justify their rate trajectory by pointing to well-anchored market inflation expectations, the sheer scale of the structural deficit must be influencing policy behind closed doors.
Inflation is being driven by oil, which is being driven by war. If there was a resolution in sight, why wait until after the election to make progress? Yesterday's rollercoaster went like this: falling oil prices spurred a wave of buying, though that positive momentum stalled when crude oil prices rebounded following President Trump’s United Nations remarks about potential post-midterm negotiations with Iran. However, late-day reports of a productive three-hour meeting between U.S. and Iranian officials stabilized the market, allowing Treasuries to steady near the close after absorbing an average $69 billion 2-year note auction.
In terms of short-term news, today's economic calendar kicked off with MBA mortgage application volume falling by 1.5 percent for the week ending September 18, driven by a 3 percent drop in refinances and a 1 percent decline in seasonally adjusted purchase loans. Despite a short-term 9 percent unadjusted weekly bump due to a holiday rebound, overall activity remains significantly suppressed compared to last year, with refinance and purchase indices down 62 percent and 11 percent year-over-year, respectively.
Later today brings preliminary September S&P Global U.S. Manufacturing PMI and Services PMI, remarks from Fed Governor Barr, crude oil inventories, and a $70 billion 5-year Treasury note auction. We begin the day with Agency MBS prices little changed from Tuesday’s close, the 2-year yielding 4.78, and the 10-year yielding 4.98 after closing yesterday at 4.97 percent.
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