1.23.26 Davos Directives; Southern Bancorp's Jeremy Davis on Winning Business; Bond Buying

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 talk about bond market movement from intentional and unintentional directives from the Trump administration. Plus, Robbie sits down with Southern Bancorp's Jeremy Davis for a discussion on how lenders must rethink culture, leadership, customer trust, and mission- driven strategy to build resilient organizations that not only withstand 2026’s challenges but emerge stronger. And we close by looking at the week that was in the mortgage industry.

Thank you to Truework, the one verification solution to replace in-house waterfalls. Verify any borrower with a VOIE solution that automates the entire process to quickly deliver the most accurate and complete reports with broad GSE coverage.

Transcript

Is anyone locking loans in this storm? Or looking at open houses? Some things can be intentional, or unintentional… like gleeking. President Trump suing Jamie Dimon and Chase yesterday for $5 billion over “political debanking” is intentional. Having an email address is intentional; the emails that are delivered are unintentional: I have one email reserved for weight loss miracle drugs, opportunities to become a millionaire with crypto, and eastern European women who want to meet me “2nite!” Speaking of crypto, are you excited about the Agencies, wholesalers, or capital markets investors intentionally accepting cryptocurrencies? There’s lots of news below, and I hope they pick the right one(s) to use in underwriting as cryptocurrencies are unintentionally dying/evaporating in record numbers. Recently Trump Media & Technology Group said it will distribute a new digital token to its shareholders, deepening its push into digital assets as policy support for cryptocurrencies builds in Washington. (Today’s podcast can be found here and this week’s are sponsored by Truework, the one verification solution to replace in-house waterfalls. Verify any borrower with a VOIE solution that automates the entire process to quickly deliver the most accurate and complete reports with broad GSE coverage. Today’s has an interview with Southern Bancorp's Jeremy Davis on how lenders must rethink culture, leadership, customer trust, and mission-driven strategy to build resilient organizations that not only withstand 2026’s challenges but emerge stronger.)

Employment and transitions

_________________________________________________

Arc Home is expanding its HomeEQ team and is hiring experienced Account Executives focused on HELOC production. HomeEQ is Arc Home’s digital HELOC platform. Following a series of upgrades driven by client feedback, HomeEQ delivers faster execution, broader income qualification options, and a digital-first workflow supported by hands-on expertise when needed. Borrowers can move from application to funding in as few as five days. As HELOC demand continues to grow, Arc Home is investing in dedicated HomeEQ Account Executives to support broker partners and help them incorporate HELOCs into their 2026 production strategy. This role is ideal for sales professionals with significant HELOC experience and want the backing of an industry leader. To learn more about the HomeEQ Account Executive opportunity and apply, visit Arc’s careers page or contact Jill Meese for a confidential discussion.

A well-established mortgage organization is seeking an experienced, strategic marketing leader to oversee and advance its marketing function. This role leads the marketing department and develops, executes, and optimizes strategies, programs, and objectives that drive brand growth, production support, and long-term profitability across all channels. The leader will evolve marketing strategy with a strong emphasis on production performance, integrated digital initiatives, and alignment with sales, operations, and executive leadership. Responsibilities include overseeing brand positioning, demand generation, communications, and channel strategy; leveraging data, reporting, and HubSpot CRM insights to guide decisions and improve results; and serving as a strategic partner to senior leadership by translating business goals into measurable outcomes. The role builds, mentors, and leads a high-performing team. Qualified candidates bring deep mortgage industry experience, extensive hands-on HubSpot expertise, a proven record of revenue-focused marketing execution, strong digital integration skills, innovative yet disciplined thinking, and executive presence with cross-functional influence. If interested, please send your resume to Anjelica Nixt for forwarding.

“Evergreen Home Loans™ is excited to be officially licensed in Minnesota, opening the door to new opportunities and continued momentum. Our mission is simple, close On Time and as Promised® while creating a WOW experience for every borrower and every member of the Evergreen family as we continue expanding. As we enter Minnesota, we’re seeking professionals who share this mindset and want to grow their careers while making a meaningful impact through exceptional service and genuine relationships. To learn more, visit discoverehl.com or contact Todd Miles, EVP of Production Growth.”

Exciting start to 2026: Midwest Loan Services is pleased to welcome Kristine Kline (248-891-6843) as the new Senior Vice President of Business Development. Kristine brings a wealth of knowledge from her 20-year career in SaaS sales for financial services, mortgage, settlement solutions, and risk mitigation. We look forward to the growth and strategic solutions Kristine will bring to the Midwest Loan Services clients.

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.

Products, services, and software for brokers and lenders

_________________________________________________

LEVEL UP YOUR SERVICING PLAYBOOK WITH SAGENT AT MBA SERVICING ‘26. Join Sagent in Dallas at MBA Servicing ‘26 to discover how Dara by Sagent is transforming mortgage servicing with unified data, streamlined workflows, real-time decisioning, and built-in compliance – the winning playbook for servicers looking to drive efficiency and elevate homeowner experiences. Simplifying complexity and automating repetitive tasks to reduce operational costs across the full servicing lifecycle, Dara delivers a modern, cloud-native platform built for today’s challenges and tomorrow’s opportunities. If you’re at the event in Dallas, stop by Sagent’s booth (606) to connect with our experts, see Dara in action, and explore how your organization can unlock new levels of performance. Don’t miss this chance to reimagine your servicing strategy and bring next-gen solutions back to your team. Learn more and schedule a meeting here.

In case you missed it, the First American Data & Analytics 2026 Housing Market Outlook webinar is now available to watch on demand. Hear directly from First American Deputy Chief Economist Odeta Kushi as she breaks down the key forces shaping the housing market, including mortgage rate trends, housing supply and demand, affordability challenges, and home price expectations. Odeta also shares insights into broader economic conditions and what they could mean for housing and mortgage activity in the year ahead. Whether you’re planning for the months ahead or looking to better understand today’s market dynamics, this timely analysis offers data-driven perspective to help you stay informed and prepared. Watch the webinar.

Secure Insight, the mortgage industry’s leader in wire and closing fraud prevention tools, became aware of two wire fraud incidents that occurred due to title companies’ failure to follow proper electronic payment fraud prevention protocols. “Fraud is at an all-time high, making it more important than ever to ensure that settlement professionals are properly vetted and adhering to established protocols in order to continue conducting business with their lender partners,” said Amanda Padd, CRO. To learn more about Secure Insight’s live monitoring database of vetted settlement agents, visit www.secureinsight.com.

The Chrisman Marketplace is 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.

STRATMOR Tech Survey open for business

_________________________________________________

STRATMOR Technology Insight® Study – Digital Innovations Survey Now Open! Technology and automation shaped nearly every strategic conversation for mortgage lenders in 2025, but where does your organization really stand? STRATMOR’s Technology Insight® Study – Digital Innovations module gives lenders a clear view of how their digital mortgage capabilities compare to peers. The lender-only survey explores progress across key digital initiatives, expected benefits of digital mortgage, and, new this year, how lenders are using automation and AI to drive efficiency and scale. Participating lenders help establish industry benchmarks and, in return, receive a summary report in 1Q 2026 with practical insights and peer comparisons to inform technology and investment decisions. If you’re evaluating your digital roadmap, this is a chance to step back, assess progress, and see how your strategy aligns with the broader market. Take the survey.

Non-QM, crypto acceptance, DSCR news from the biz

_________________________________________________

No one can argue that non-Agency loans have eaten into the market share of Freddie and Fannie. In addition, the underwriting guidelines, pricing, and processes of those in the correspondent and wholesale channels have not gone unnoticed by F&F, including construction and DSCR programs. Who’s doing what out there?

Radian Mortgage Capital LLC is expanding its product offering beyond jumbo and conforming conventional loans, with a recently announced new suite of non-QM loan products. Their non-QM programs help mortgage lenders to serve a broader range of borrowers, including self-employed professionals, investors looking to purchase or refinance investment properties, those seeking flexibility with interest-only payments or unique properties like non-warrantable condos. Learn more and connect with the Radian Mortgage Capital LLC team at https://www.radian.com/correspondent-lending

Newrez announced its intention to recognize crypto assets in mortgage origination beginning in February making them the first major lender to take this step. View the Press Release for Details.

Newrez has made in HomeVision to create an AI-driven mortgage underwriting platform. This partnership will enable an industry-first solution designed to deliver real-time mortgage decisions across loan types. View the Press Release for details.

Newrez Correspondent issued a reminder to announcement 2025-088 released on December 18, 2025.

Bank statements just got easier with Newfi Correspondent. Check out their guides to qualify your self-employed borrowers.

American Pride Bank (APB) announced the expansion of its specialized One-Time Close Construction Loan programs through its wholesale mortgage division, APB Wholesale. The new product suite reinforces its commitment to providing flexible, innovative financial solutions for ambitious entrepreneurs and self-employed borrowers nationwide.

Pennymac updated Jumbo LLPAs effective for all Best-Efforts Commitments taken on or after Tuesday, January 6, 2025. View Pennymac Announcement 26-01. But wait! Pennymac updated Jumbo LLPAs effective for all Best-Efforts Commitments taken on or after Monday, January 12, 2025. View Pennymac Announcement 26-02 for details.

Pennymac Announcement 26-04 describes an enhancement to its AUS Jumbo program, reducing the minimum loan amount for Adjustable-Rate Mortgage (ARM) transactions. This change is effective for new loan applications dated on and after January 12, 2026.

As of Tuesday, January 20th, First Home Mortgage commitment grids for new 30-Year Fixed Rate, $375K max loan amount, and 30-Year Fixed Rate, $400K max loan amount, will be available in Pricing & Execution Whole Loan® (PE – Whole Loan®). For more information, view the Browse Prices Export File Specification document.

Non-QM just got more exciting, LoanStream Wholesale announced Foreign National DSCR program. Offering flexible options and competitive guidelines. Program Highlights include loan amounts up to $2 million, credit scores starting at 680 (No FICO Option Available), LTVs up to 75 percent for purchase, 70 percent for rate/term, and 65 percent for cash-out, minimum DSCR of 1.0, 1–4-unit properties allowed, cash-out proceeds may be used as reserves, FTHB allowed with verifiable history.

JMAC Lending has a hot new program, Newport Non-QM, so many ways to qualify. Designed specifically for modern borrowers who do not fit inside agency boxes.

United Wholesale Mortgage (UWM) announced a special pricing incentive to celebrate its 40th year in business: UWM mortgage broker partners can receive 40 basis points (bps) on all new locks until February 27. This incentive is available on all eligible conventional and government loans. Brokers can also combine this offering with up to 40 “Control Your Price (CYP)” bps to provide borrowers with even more savings. Additional details on this limited-time pricing incentive can be found here.

Newfi Lending announced several expansions to its DSCR loan program including larger loan amounts, rural properties, and the ability for borrowers to use qualifying cryptocurrency assets to satisfy reserve requirements… without requiring liquidation. Expanded Cryptocurrency DSCR reserve guidelines include using up to 25 percent of the current value of Bitcoin and Ethereum held in a Coinbase account and using up to 50 percent of the current value of cryptocurrency mutual funds or ETFs, assets must be held with a traditional, currency-based financial provider (e.g., Fidelity or Schwab). Crypto-based funds are limited to a combined maximum of 50 percent of the total reserve requirement and account statements must be dated within 60 days.

“Newfi has recognized cryptocurrency in its underwriting guidelines for some time including options to convert cryptocurrency to USD and use those funds in the transaction with proper

documentation, and the use of Crypto based mutual funds or ETFs offered by traditional currency based financial products providers as eligible assets on their asset utilization and asset

depletion programs. The new updates apply to Newfi’s Sequoia DSCR program available for mortgage brokers to unlock additional qualifying pathways through Newfi’s Wholesale channel and for investor clients who may be asset-strong but prefer not to liquidate long-term holdings through its Direct channel.”

Capital markets: $200 billion MBS buying only symbolic?

_________________________________________________

If I had a goal of buying 20 Mickey Mantle rookie cards, would I tell everyone? And spook the market? The details of buying $200 billion in MBS were non-existent at Davos, as promised by President Trump, perhaps intentionally. Besides, the recent selloff in Treasuries has helped leave mortgage rates as of Tuesday less than 10 basis points below where they were before Trump’s MBS-buying directive.

A softer tone from President Trump on Greenland and tariffs than was expected in Davos eased immediate trade-war fears, but skepticism remains about that pivot as U.S.-European tensions persist and geopolitical risks remain elevated. Markets faced a heavy data slate yesterday, including jobless claims (which remained at 200k), GDP revisions (revised up to 4.4 percent from 4.3 percent), and October–November PCE (2.8 percent in November, up slightly from October, but unchanged from September), which reinforced a picture of labor market stability and gradual disinflation without reviving near-term rate-cut expectations. Meanwhile, Supreme Court comments in the Trump v. Cook case suggested Fed Governor Lisa Cook is likely to remain in place for now, helping preserve confidence in Federal Reserve independence, even as longer-term uncertainty around future leadership turnover lingers.

There’s little evidence that the Trump administration’s plan to buy up to $200 billion of mortgage-backed securities will meaningfully lower housing costs, with economists and Fed officials arguing the core problem is housing supply, not financing. While the purchases may have marginally narrowed mortgage spreads and briefly nudged rates lower, experts say the effort is largely aimed at offsetting the Fed’s gradual MBS runoff and is unlikely to deliver broad affordability relief.

Uncertainty tied to Trump’s policies are pushing Treasury yields higher, creating a headwind for mortgage rates and reinforcing the view that boosting housing supply would do far more to improve affordability than bond-buying programs. Mortgage rates rose in this week’s Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey: for the week ending January 22, the 30- and 15-year mortgage rates increased 3-basis points and 6-basis points, respectively to 6.09 percent and 5.44 percent. From a year ago, rates are 87-basis points and 72-basis points lower.

Today’s economic calendar kicks off later this morning with S&P Global flash PMIs for January which will be followed by final January Michigan sentiment; Class D 48-hours is also today. Overnight, the Bank of Japan was out with its latest monetary policy decision, when it kept rates steady at 0.75 percent as expected, and upped growth and inflation forecasts. We begin Friday with Agency MBS prices little changed from Thursday’s close, the 2-year yielding 3.60, and the 10-year yielding 4.23 after closing yesterday at 4.25 percent.

Classics…

Dear Abby,

I’ve suspected that my husband has been fooling around, and when confronted with the evidence, he denied everything and said it would never happen again.

Dear Abby,

Our son writes that he is taking Judo. Why would a boy who was raised in a good Christian home turn against his own?

Dear Abby,

I joined the Navy to see the world. I’ve seen it. Now how do I get out?

Dear Abby,

My forty-year-old son has been paying a psychiatrist $50.00 an hour every week for two and a half years. He must be crazy.

Dear Abby,

I was married to Bill for three months and I didn’t know he drank until one night he came home sober.

Dear Abby,

My mother is mean and short tempered; I think she is going through mental pause.

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, “Helping Borrowers in a Market Defined by Complexity and Change.” The Commentary’s podcast is available on all major platforms, including Apple and Spotify.

qoɹ