7.11.25 Trending Lock Data; Josh Silver on the Community Reinvestment Act; Rates in a Range

Welcome to The Chrisman Commentary, your go-to daily mortgage news podcast, where industry insights meet expert analysis. Hosted by Robbie Chrisman, this podcast delivers the latest updates on mortgage rates, capital markets, and the forces shaping the housing finance landscape. Whether you're a seasoned professional or just looking to stay informed, you'll get clear, concise breakdowns of market trends and economic shifts that impact the mortgage world.

In today’s episode, we look at FEMA's impact on the mortgage industry. Plus, Robbie sits down with  Pennymac’s Kim Nichols to discuss the current state of the broker channel, market dynamics, and strategies shaping the future of third-party origination. And we close by examining what sort of range Treasury yields are expected to hover around throughout the summer.

Thank you to Truework, the only all-in-one, automated VOIEA platform that helps mortgage providers achieve up to 50% cost savings with an industry leading 75% completion rate.

Transcript

Don’t forget to snag your free Slurpee today at participating 7-Elevens! Speaking of edible things, I like my Frosted Flakes, Froot Loops, and Raisin Bran. M&A is not confined to lenders: Imagine my surprise when I learned that Michigan's WK Kellogg Co. is set to be acquired by the Italian candymaker behind Ferrero Rocher in a nearly $3 billion deal. Sometimes it is hard to track who’s doing what, and how it impacts us, which is why STRATMOR’s latest write up is titled, “The Tax and Spending Bill: The Impact on Borrowers.” Tracking locks is important: the locks that Optimal Blue tracks increased 2 percent in June. Non-QM locks account for an increasing percentage of total volume, rising over 7 percent during the month. “The steady rise in this category reflects the industry's growing focus on flexibility and meeting borrowers where they are.” According to Curinos’ new proprietary application index, refinances decreased 21 percent week over week and increased 17 percent in June; the purchase index decreased 19% week over week and decreased 2% for June as a whole. June 2025 funded mortgage volume increased 15% YoY. (Today’s podcast can be found here and this week’s is sponsored by Truework, the only all-in-one, automated VOIEA platform that helps mortgage providers achieve up to 50 percent cost savings with an industry leading 75 percent completion rate. Today’s has an interview with National Community Reinvestment Coalition’s Josh Silver on ending redlining through a community-centered reform of the Community Reinvestment Act.)

Employment across the country

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Arc Home, a top 10 non-QM lender, is hiring experienced Account Executives across the country. As Non-QM and Non-Agency volume grows, we are expanding our team with producers who want real support and practical tools. You can originate across Wholesale, Non-Delegated, and Delegated Correspondent with consistent pricing and investor optionality. Onboarding is organized and efficient. Sales enablement is hands-on, and our marketing tools are built to help you stay in front of clients, not buried in admin work. If your current company expects you to do it all yourself, maybe it is time to expect more. Contact Jill Meese for a confidential conversation or visit the Arc Home careers page.

Gateway Mortgage, a division of Gateway First Bank, is hiring a National Mortgage Recruiter to support its nationwide expansion. This key role will help grow Gateway’s producer-led platform, which is built by originators for originators. Led by top-producing sales executives, Gateway is focused on creating a high-performance environment for modern mortgage professionals. “We know what loan officers need because we’ve been there,” says Jeff Schmidt, President, Mortgage Division. What sets Gateway apart is its producer-led sales culture, modern tech stack (Blend, Polly, Ardley, and more), relationship-first recruiting, and a tenured team: MLOs (6.9 yrs), Managers (10.75 yrs), Underwriters (10.42 yrs). The ideal candidate has national recruiting experience and a passion for helping originators thrive. Contact Jeff Schmidt with confidential resumes or questions, or visit www.gatewayfirst.com to learn more.

Evergreen Home Loans™, a leading FNMA, Freddie Mac, and GNMA Seller/Servicer with over $10 billion in servicing, is growing its presence in Washington state and seeking a dynamic leader to join our mission. This is a unique opportunity for someone with an established team of loan officers and branches to align with a company that’s built on more than 38 years of trust, results, and relationship-driven lending. Headquartered in the Pacific Northwest, Evergreen is executing a national growth strategy that puts people first, equipping leaders with industry-best tools, innovative loan programs, and a collaborative culture that empowers success. There is also potential to take over existing branches, allowing for smooth entry or expansion into new markets. If you’re ready to grow with a company that values leadership, longevity, and loyalty, connect with Todd Miles and explore what your future at Evergreen could look like.

Earn 75 bps commission as a non-QM Wholesale Account Executive with NewPoint Mortgage. No tiers. No territories. Work from home. We have the technology, programs, and culture to make you the go-to expert your referral partners want. With over 20 years in non-QM, our operations staff understand how to support you in closing your difficult deals. Please contact Mike Fernandez to take advantage of this opportunity. 

The Chrisman Job Board is live, 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.

Correspondent & wholesale loan programs

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“NFTYDoor offers a plug-and-play digital HELOC solution for Correspondents. You get a 1-minute online application branded to you, that either you or your borrower can complete. From there, we deliver instant results. Once the offer is accepted, we handle 100 percent of the tech and fulfillment, from application processing, documentation, underwriting, closing, funding, compliance, and all support, and it's fully branded to you, so you get all the credit! Even better, it’s designed with your assistants in mind so that they can serve as your primary contact throughout the journey. It’s fast. It’s scalable. And it’s built for you. See it to believe it. Contact Matt Rohl, Carl Markman, or Seth Cohen to learn more.”

A California borrower beat 22 offers, including higher-priced ones. Flyhomes Cash Offer made it possible, with as little as $0 down and no cash out of pocket. Join the live webinar from Flyhomes on July 17 to learn how this innovative purchase bridge loan works. Flyhomes Cash Offer helps borrowers unlock equity from both their current and future homes, enabling up to 105% LTV, with no contingencies and no asset liquidation required. For the past 10 years, Flyhomes has been a pioneer and leader in innovative financial products, helping 5,000+ buyers purchase their next home and enabling LOs to close 1.2 more loans per month on average. Save your spot now for the July 17 webinar or book a call to learn more.

“At eRESI, we blend deep expertise with a relentless drive for innovation, ensuring our clients receive the best possible solutions. As the first significant Non-QM investor on ICE's Encompass Investor Connect, this commitment to innovation holds. Lenders can now efficiently submit closed loans to eRESI's seller portal right from their Encompass workflow, streamlining the non-QM loan purchase process like never before. We're also excited to introduce our new Jumbo AUS program, which offers competitive pricing, especially for purchase buyers, without the need for manual underwriting. By leveraging AUS findings, lenders can operate with the speed, certainty, and efficiency crucial for success. These are just a few of many ways in which we empower our partners to succeed in the non-QM market. Interested in learning how we can help accelerate growth and increase your non-Agency business? Contact your eRESI Representative or email us at sales@eresimortgage.com.”

Services, products, and programs for lenders and brokers

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“Engineering Mortgage Tech That Powers Efficiency and Growth. At Moder, we build technology with one goal in mind: helping mortgage players become more efficient, responsive, and customer-focused. Whether it's through Gen AI, RPA, or smart automation, our solutions are designed to simplify the complex and scale what works. We start by evaluating your existing tech stack, identifying gaps, redundancies, and untapped potential. From there, we bring in targeted solutions that optimize what you already have, unlocking performance and delivering the outcomes you need without disruption. We don’t believe in one-size-fits-all or over-engineered platforms. Instead, we create modular, adaptable blueprints tailored to your unique needs, making it easier for lenders and servicers of all sizes to adopt innovation without excessive investment or operational risk. Backed by strong engineering principles like delivery obsession, pride of ownership, and intentional listening, our tech delivers measurable impact: faster turn times, lower costs, better borrower experiences, and growth. At Moder, we don’t just build tech… We engineer the future of mortgage, powered by performance and built for impact.”

Why traditional lending is falling short! A recent analysis of 1,000 high-scoring “No Sales” leads revealed that 36 percent of those prospects funded with a competitor. The opportunity wasn’t lost. It was misclassified. Your LOS didn’t catch it. Your CRM didn’t flag it. Your Loan Officer didn’t see it. But AI could have. Meet Aithena by Insellerate, the AI engine trusted by 100s of lenders, powering over 1 million funded loans. It understands, anticipates, and converts… in real time. Say goodbye to missed deals and outdated pipelines. Say hello to intelligent mortgage automation that actually works. Ready to reclaim the deals you’re losing? Learn more https://crm.insellerate.com/my-aithena/

The Chrisman Marketplace is now “up and going,” a centralized hub for vendors and service providers across the mortgage industry to be viewed by lenders in a very cost-effective manner. We’re adding new providers daily, so check back often to see what’s new. To reserve your place or learn more, contact us at info@chrismancommentary.com.

Misc. wholesale and investor news

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Longtime readers of this Commentary know that we usually group lending news into buckets, such as government, or conventional conforming, or non-Agency. But sometimes it doesn’t all group nicely, and a hodge-podge of potentially important news comes out. Such as today…

Pennymac’s change to MLPA and Loan Purchase process are effective as of July 1, 2025, details available in posted Pennymac announcement 25-67. 

Freedom Mortgage Wholesale is now available in ARIVE, bringing you an efficient and streamlined lending experience. Explore the benefits: Access to all Freedom Mortgage solutions, including FHA, VA, USDA, Conventional, and Jumbo options. Intuitive Pricing enhanced with ongoing updates to help ensure you have current rates at your fingertips.

Dedicated Support from your Account Executive to help you navigate the lending process with confidence. Coming Soon: An integrated origination feature that will allow users to submit loans to its Wholesale Portal through ARIVE’s intuitive platform.

Good. Better. Broker. 100th episode featuring Mat Ishbia, President and CEO of United Wholesale Mortgage, sharing his top advice for loan officers, real estate agents and anyone interested in the industry. This is a great opportunity for your audience to hear directly from one of the industry's top leaders and benefit from his advice.

State Eligibility Updates for Non-QM DSCR Loans in Maryland! Effective with AmeriHome Mortgage Product Announcement 20250701-CL, AmeriHome is suspending all new commitments for Non-QM DSCR Mortgage Loans secured by a subject property located in the state of Maryland. View the announcement for details.

AmeriHome Mortgage General Announcement 20250609-CL summarizes previously published changes made during June, additional changes made with this announcement, and recent Agency and regulatory news.

Logan Finance announced a powerful new feature in LoganConnect that puts more control at your fingertips. You can view all your documents directly in the portal, including your disclosures anytime, anywhere. Click here for a tutorial on how to navigate this new and improved key feature.

Logan Finance issued an important credit policy update regarding investor loans in Baltimore City, Maryland. Effective immediately, Logan Finance will no longer accept submissions and/or locks for Investment Property loans located in Baltimore City, MD. All currently locked loans in this area will require an additional valuation review prior to funding and/or purchase.

If the updated value from this desktop review results in the loan being deemed ineligible, it will not be funded or purchased.

National MI announced updates to the TrueGuide® and Rescission Relief Guide.

Citi Correspondent Lending reduced the HomeRun program's LLPA, effective with new Best-Efforts locks.

Capital markets: rates continue to drift in their range

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Markets still anticipate at least one Fed rate cut by year-end, though a move in July now appears off the table. With the tariff deadline pushed to August 1, investors are closely monitoring trade developments but are holding off on major shifts in positioning until there's more clarity. From the Fed’s perspective, the labor market is seen as tight, inflation remains elevated, and ongoing tariff uncertainty could all influence the policy outlook.

We learned yesterday that jobless claims fell to 227k for the week of July 5, marking a fourth straight weekly decline and signaling continued labor market strength, with the 4-week average also easing and continuing claims rising slightly in line with expectations. The data pushed 10-year yields slightly higher to 4.35 percent as attention shifted to the upcoming long bond auction later in the day.

Yesterday’s $22 billion 30-year bond auction offered a solid read on investor appetite for long-term debt amid ongoing concerns about deficits, trade tensions, and rising interest costs. Despite recent skepticism around duration, the bonds sold at a slightly better-than-expected price, with strong demand (especially from buyers outside of primary dealers, who took 87 percent, above the recent average). The result helped ease upward pressure on yields and reinforced Treasuries’ safe-haven appeal, suggesting that markets are shifting their focus from fiscal worries to economic fundamentals and Fed policy. The auction capped a week in which $119 billion in new supply was smoothly absorbed, signaling steady demand.

Mortgage rates rose for the first time in six weeks following the stronger than expected June jobs report. For the week ending July 10, the 30-year and 15-year mortgage rates in Freddie Mac’s Primary Mortgage Market Survey rose 5-basis points and 6-basis points, respectively, to 6.72 percent and 5.86 percent. However, those mortgage rates are 17-basis points and 31-basis points lower from a year ago.

Today’s lone data point is the June budget statement from the Congressional Budget Office, due out this afternoon. Estimates are for a surplus of $26 billion compared with a $71 billion deficit in the prior fiscal year. Without any meaningful data, we begin Friday with Agency MBS prices a shade worse than Thursday’s close, the 2-year yielding 3.88, and the 10-year yielding 4.38 after closing yesterday at 4.35 percent.

U.S. Government Business Policy

It is the month of July on the shore of Lake of the Ozarks. It is raining, and the little town looks totally deserted. It is tough times, everybody is in debt, and everybody lives on credit.

Suddenly, a rich tourist from Connecticut comes to town.

He enters the only hotel, lays a $100 bill on the reception counter, and goes to inspect the rooms upstairs in order to pick one.

The hotel proprietor takes the $100 bill and runs to pay his debt to the butcher.

The butcher takes the $100 bill and runs to pay his debt to the pig grower.

The pig grower takes the $100 bill note and runs to pay his debt to the supplier of his feed and fuel.

The supplier of feed and fuel takes the $100 bill and runs to pay his debt to the town prostitute that in these hard times, gave her services on credit.

The prostitute runs to the hotel and pays off her debt with the $100 bill to the hotel proprietor to pay for the rooms that she rented when she brought her clients there.

The hotel proprietor then lays the $100 bill back on the counter so that the rich tourist will not suspect anything.

At that moment, the rich tourist comes down after inspecting the rooms, takes his $100 bill after saying that he did not like any of the rooms, and leaves town.

No one earned anything. However, the whole town is now without debt and looks to the future with a lot of optimism.

This is how the United States Government is doing business today.

Visit www.ChrismanCommentary.com for more information on our industry partners, access archived commentaries, or subscribe to the Daily Mortgage News and Commentary. You can also explore the Chrisman Marketplace, a centralized hub connecting mortgage professionals with trusted vendors and solutions. If you’re interested, check out my periodic blog on the STRATMOR Group website. This month’s piece is titled, “The Tax and Spending Bill: The Impact on Borrowers.” The Commentary’s podcast is available on all major platforms, including Apple and Spotify.

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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 2025 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.)