Hispanic homeownership has room for improvement. We’re in the middle of National Hispanic Heritage Month, which goes from September 15 to October 15. (Mortgages With Millennials, today at 10AM PT, focuses on Hispanics and mortgages.) The day of September 15 is significant because it is the anniversary of independence for Latin American countries Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua. In addition, Mexico and Chile celebrate their independence days on September 16 and September18, respectively. Also, Columbus Day or Día de la Raza, which is October 12, falls within this 30 day period. The U.S. Hispanic poverty rate fell to a record-low 13.9 percent in 2025, down 1.2 percentage points from 2024 and continuing a long-term decline from 21.9 percent in 1973; the overall U.S. poverty rate also fell, from 10.7 percent to 10.2 percent. The improvement is notable because it remained statistically evident even after changes to the Census Bureau’s survey methodology, but the data also show that Hispanics remain disproportionately represented among people living in poverty. (Black and American Indian/Alaska Native populations are also overrepresented, while White and Asian populations are underrepresented relative to their shares of the total population.) (Today’s podcast can be found here. This week’s ‘casts are presented by Gateless, intelligent automation that gives you the competitive edge. Gateless solutions reduce costs, deliver a superior borrower experience, and mitigate risk by automating tasks and decisions historically made by people. Today’s has an interview with Maxwell’s John Paasonen and PLACE’s Chris Stuart on why the industry is shifting toward massive tech ecosystems instead of standalone point solutions and how combining brokerage tech and mortgage infrastructure creates the ultimate “one-stop-shop” for the consumer.)
Employment and transitions
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Ready to make your next move? Zillow Home Loans is hiring Mortgage Loan Officers across the country. Zillow Home Loans’ loan officers are backed by Zillow’s industry-leading technology and the most-visited real estate platform in the U.S. In this role, you’ll guide buyers with care and confidence, helping them move from pre-approval through closing with support from centralized processing, underwriting, and closing teams. You’ll be provided leads from buyers who are already shopping for homes in the Zillow ecosystem and are ready to move. Join a company that’s reshaping an industry and helping more people make home a reality. Zillow was named a FORTUNE 100 Best Company to Work For® in 2026. Now hiring remotely in select locations. See open roles here. (Equal Housing Lender, NMLS #10287)
“I recently made the move to Mortgage Solutions Financial, and the reason was simple: the people and the culture. You can feel when a company cares about its people. I felt it in the conversations, the leadership, and the way people talked about one another. It wasn’t written on a wall. It was real. I’m John G. Stevens, Chief Growth Officer at MSF. I moved because I saw a company where people can build, grow, and win without losing what matters. Too many mortgage professionals stay put because change is uncomfortable. But when a better opportunity exists, comfortable can cost more than the move. I made the change. YOU should too. Call me. Let’s talk about why I moved to MSF, and why you should make the same move. John G. Stevens, Chief Growth Officer, Mortgage Solutions Financial. 801.427.7111.
Informative Research just announced that Tim Cox has returned, taking on the role of executive vice president of business process automation. Tim brings more than two decades of mortgage technology, client experience, and operational strategy experience to the position, including a previous tenure at IR that spanned roles in operations, sales operations, and client experience. Most recently, Tim worked as SVP of strategic solutions and client success at Xactus, where he led client experience initiatives, AI enablement, and operational scalability. In his new role, Tim will help IR and its clients work more efficiently and intelligently as the company scales its automation strategy. Tim will join the rest of the team at MBA Annual in Chicago next month. Book time to meet with our team here.
The Chrisman Job Board is the go-to platform for employment opportunities across the mortgage industry. For employers, adding a job listing is easy. Simply create an account and drop in your existing application link, or forward the details to our team and we’ll take care of it for you. For job seekers, joining our Talent Community is completely free. Upload your resume to be visible to hiring companies across the industry and stay connected to new opportunities as they go live.
Lender and brokers products, services, and software
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Regulatory oversight for automated valuation models (AVMs) has shifted in recent years, placing greater emphasis on rigorous testing and validation. Lenders who aren’t keeping pace with evolving compliance requirements can be exposed to greater risk. ICE’s AVM Model Monitor provides on-demand detailed reporting helping lenders support compliance, strengthen internal risk policies and build more efficient property valuation workflows. Built on more than 10 years of historical information and powered by ICE’s national property and valuations data, AVM Model Monitor delivers daily forward-blind testing, independent model validation and automated monthly reporting, all through an intuitive self-service dashboard. Learn how ICE is helping lenders strengthen their AVM testing and validation workflows.
Borrower experience has become the new battleground for lender growth and portfolio performance. On October 1, join experts from STRATMOR Group, Nations Lending, and LoanCare for “Customer Experience, Transparency, and the Tech Gap: What Lenders Can’t Ignore,” a candid discussion on what new research reveals about how top lenders are using new technology and advanced analytics to improve cash flow, boost retention, and build customer relationships that last. Learn how AI is moving beyond hype to deliver measurable value and discover practical strategies for creating better borrower experiences. This webinar will provide practical insights into how to win the battle over your customers. Register now.
Heading to the HousingWire Mortgage Bankers Summit on Oct 1st in Dallas? Connect with JazzX AI to compare notes on how lenders are moving beyond disconnected AI point solutions and putting enterprise intelligence into action. If you’re exploring how governed, end-to-end AI can lower cost per loan, improve quality, and increase throughput without replacing your existing systems, let’s grab lunch, connect between sessions, or meet at happy hour. Submit our Request a Demo form to schedule a time.
Every time the Fed sneezes, HELOC pipelines catch something: a cold or a growth spurt, depending on the direction. Rates dip and applications flood in. Rates tick up and your newly hired processors are alphabetizing the supply closet. Meanwhile, home equity keeps stacking: $34.9 trillion nationwide, with HELOC balances up 17 straight quarters. The demand is real. It just refuses to hold still. Add in the industry’s shift toward full underwriting before approval and funding, and you’re doing first-lien work on second-lien margins. Fun math. There’s a better model: fulfillment that runs fully automated where it can, expert-managed where it should, and flexes capacity with every rate move. Ready on day one, costing less every quarter. Join Indecomm for “Built for the Surge: How to Scale HELOC Fulfillment When Demand Moves with the Fed” on October 29th. Register here. The supply closet can wait.
Your SOC examination shouldn’t feel like just another compliance exercise. The right approach can help uncover control gaps, strengthen your organization, and build trust with the customers and stakeholders who rely on you. Richey May delivers tailored SOC readiness, SOC 1 and SOC 2 services backed by experienced assurance professionals who understand the financial services industry. Whether you’re approaching your first examination or looking to improve your next cycle, our team can help you navigate the process with greater confidence. Ready for a better SOC experience? Connect with Richey May at info@richeymay.com.
One Platform. Every LO. Days, Not Months. Rolling out new technology to your entire sales force is a gamble, unless it plugs into what you already run. MortgageCoach is built on your existing infrastructure, native inside ICE Encompass®, with real-time pricing from Optimal BlueTM and accurate fees from LodestarTM and SmartFeesTM. No rip-and-replace and no lengthy adoption curve. The result: every LO on your team presents like your best one, consistently, compliantly, at scale, with AI now doing the heavy lifting on presentation-building itself. New hires ramp faster. Veteran producers stay sharp. Your brand experience stays consistent no matter who’s in the room. Meet the TrustEngine team at MBA Annual in Chicago to see how leading lenders are standardizing advisor-level performance across their entire origination team, without the retraining headache. Book your 1:1 today.
Credit and price changes… starting to pick up speed
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Remember: neither Freddie nor Fannie use a credit score to determine whether they will buy a loan. Ryan Kingsley raises a question: If lenders pull both FICO and VantageScore, and both must be disclosed to the GSEs, who is actually ready to operationalize that on the verification side? Other questions arise. What happens upstream, at the credit report level, when lenders start pulling dual scores at volume? The verification infrastructure has to be ready before the investor infrastructure can catch up, and that is a detail most coverage skips.
An industry vet in the credit world noted, “If the purpose of introducing VantageScore 4.0 is to increase competition and lender choice, how are FHFA and the GSEs addressing the disparity between direct sellers and lenders dependent on correspondent aggregators? Rocket and UWM have direct execution available, while smaller lenders may originate a GSE-eligible loan but have no correspondent investor willing to purchase it. What is being done to ensure that the new scoring model is commercially accessible across all lender channels, rather than primarily benefiting institutions with direct GSE delivery?
Yes, yesterday Rocket Mortgage announced it will become “the first mortgage lender to use VantageScore 4.0 as its preferred credit scoring model for all eligible loans. After roughly four months of testing, the company found that VantageScore helped more clients qualify and move forward in the mortgage process, while also reducing credit scoring costs.”
During the fourth quarter of 2026, the company will default to VantageScore 4.0 for mortgages that will be delivered to Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, VA home loans, and any other eligible mortgages.
“The mortgage industry has relied on one credit scoring model for decades. Competition is healthy, especially when it can lower costs and expand responsible access to homeownership. We did the work, compared the models, and chose the one that helped more qualified clients,” said Jay Bray, CEO of Rocket Mortgage. “With our mission to ‘help everyone home’ this decision only made sense.”
“So far this year, the company obtained 1.4 million credit reports using both VantageScore and FICO. Rocket Mortgage did an extensive study that helped the company determine VantageScore 4.0 opens access to some clients who wouldn’t be served otherwise, and many are able to secure a mortgage on better pricing terms. For those who saved money with VantageScore 4.0, the savings were an average of $1,600 at closing. Rocket Mortgage is now ready to shift credit scores to the latest technology and will continue to evaluate new options as they become available.
“The transition will apply to all Rocket Mortgage direct-to-consumer loan products that currently allow VantageScore use. For now, mortgages for investment properties and second homes, home equity loans, FHA loans, jumbo loans, and some other products will still use FICO scores. Rocket Pro, the division of Rocket Mortgage that provides home loans through mortgage broker partners, will provide both VantageScore and FICO to mortgage brokers, as part of its commitment to broker optionality. In addition to credit, mortgage approval also depends on income, debt, assets, property, and other loan requirements.”
In the last several weeks…
Freddie Mac’s Single-Family Seller/Servicer Guide (Guide) Bulletin 2026-H announces the expanded availability of VantageScore 4.0 to all Sellers. The Credit Score models approved by U.S. Federal Housing (FHFA) are Classic FICO®, VantageScore 4.0, and FICO Score 10T.
On September 9, 2026, in collaboration with FHFA, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac announced broad availability of VantageScore® 4.0, allowing all approved sellers to use VS4 credit scores for eligible loan deliveries. At this time, AmeriHome Mortgage will not utilize VantageScore 4.0 credit to determine eligibility or pricing. They will continue to use Classic FICO®.
On May 21, 2026, the FHA issued FHA INFO 2026-11 confirming its intention to add VantageScore® 4.0 and FICO® Score 10T in addition to the existing Classic FICO® as eligible credit score models for FHA-insured mortgage underwriting. As of September 10th, the FHA is announcing an implementation date of January 1, 2027, and issuing a preparedness guide for mortgagees and other stakeholders regarding the addition of these models.
Effective August 28, 2026, Pennymac announced a significant expansion to their temporary buydown offerings. These updates introduce updated credit score requirements, and clarified guidelines across eligible GSE, FHA, and VA products. See Announcement 26-103 for more details.
Capital markets: inflation is still driving rates
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For now, the economy’s strength and the absence of clear “demand destruction” leave energy-driven inflation and higher-for-longer rates as the two main drivers of sentiment. Investors increasingly treat higher oil and diesel prices as sustained inflation risks rather than a temporary spike. Eventually, transportation costs will feed into food and core goods, eroding consumer purchasing power.
Yet the Treasury selloff reflects a market that still views the U.S. economy as resilient: 10-year break-evens remain relatively contained (at 2.35 percent), suggesting confidence in the Fed’s inflation-fighting credibility. Higher real yields and term premiums reflect expectations for rates to remain elevated, while strong business investment, solid employment, retail spending, and robust real-consumption and GDP estimates provide little evidence of an imminent slowdown. The risk is that sustained energy inflation finally weakens consumers or growth, forcing markets to quickly reduce rate-hike expectations and triggering a Treasury rally.
The U.S. Treasury selloff intensified Monday as the Trump administration’s rejection of Iran’s proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz raised fears that the war’s energy shock will persist, pushing the 10-year yield 9-basis points higher to 5.25 percent, a 19-year high, and the 30-year to 5.57 percent, its highest since 2004. The market is increasingly focused on the interaction between sustained oil-driven inflation and tighter monetary policy: investors anticipate the Fed may need to keep rates higher for longer as the Iran conflict becomes a central driver of the global macroeconomic outlook.
U.S. Treasuries and Agency MBS began the week under selling pressure, showing little relief even as oil prices retreated on signs of potential U.S.-Iran diplomatic progress. A resilient economy combined with persistent price pressures could reinforce the case for restrictive Fed policy, while weaker labor data would raise the possibility that higher rates and elevated costs are finally beginning to constrain demand. Today’s busy economic calendar has July’s FHFA Housing Price Index and S&P Case-Shiller Home Price Index, September Consumer Confidence, August JOLTS, and remarks from Fed Governor Bowman, Fed Governor Barr, and Fed Governor Waller. We begin Tuesday with Agency MBS prices slightly better than Monday’s close, the 2-year yielding 4.91, and the 10-year yielding 5.22 after closing yesterday at 5.25 percent.
War is full of logistical challenges, and throughout history one of the major concerns is how to feed armies to provide a reliable supply of food to maintain both their energy levels and morale. As the old saying goes, “An army marches on its stomach.” Military rations have existed since at least the time of ancient Rome, when soldiers received 2 pounds of bread a day, sometimes with meat, olive oil, and wine. Today, U.S. troops are provided with MREs (“Meals, Ready-to-Eat”). Over the years, some foods were created specifically for soldiers but became beloved by the civilian population. For example…
In 1942, the U.S. Army offered a lucrative contract to any company that could figure out a process for producing palatable frozen orange juice, deemed necessary for keeping vitamin C levels at acceptable levels among the troops. It wasn’t until 1945 that a viable process was created, at which point the Florida Foods Corporation won the contract to produce 500,000 pounds of orange juice concentrate.
However, the war ended before the product was shipped. Finding itself sitting on a giant mound of oranges, Florida Foods changed its name to the Vacuum Foods Corporation a year later and began selling the nation’s first concentrated frozen orange juice, which it called Minute Maid (in reference to the product’s quick and easy preparation). Despite initially slow sales, Minute Maid eventually took off (with the help of a jingle from Bing Crosby), paving the way for similar frozen products.
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(Market data provided in partnership with MBS Live. For free job postings and to view candidate resumes, visit the Chrisman Job Board. This newsletter is intended for sophisticated mortgage professionals only. There are no paid endorsements by me. For the latest mortgage news, visit Mortgage News Daily. For archived commentaries, or to subscribe, go to www.ChrismanCommentary.com. Copyright 2026 Chrisman LLC. All rights reserved. Paid job & product listings do appear. This report or any portion hereof may not be reprinted, sold, or redistributed without the written consent of Rob Chrisman. The views and opinions in this newsletter are mine alone unless otherwise specifically stated herein.)
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