Volume 25 Issue 146

Monday, August 03, 2026

MBA Advocacy Update: MBA Reactions on FOMC, Q2 GDP; FHFA Duty to Serve Proposal Letter; FHA Waives Well Water Requirements; more

This week’s top legislative and policy news from the Mortgage Bankers Association.

MBA’s CEO Listening Tour Gathers Industry Leaders in Detroit

On July 23, the Mortgage Bankers Association's CEO Listening Tour brought mortgage industry leaders together in Detroit for candid, peer-to-peer conversations on the issues shaping today's market.

Chart of the Week: Purchase Applications Payment Index for Selected States

MBA’s Purchase Applications Payment Index showed that, although national affordability conditions have worsened somewhat since the start of the Iran conflict, the longer-term trend over the past three years has been one of gradual improvement.

VantageScore: Consumer Credit Healthy, but Mortgage Delinquencies Tick Up

VantageScore, Stamford, Conn., released its CreditGauge for June, reporting that the average VantageScore 4.0 Credit Score increased one point to 702.

MBA VIDEOS

mPower Moments: On Building a Career Through Passion with MMLA’s Joanne Misuraca

MBA Now: Marina Walsh, CMB, on MBA's Upcoming HELOC and Home Equity Workshop

MBA Research Minute

MBA Eye on Washington

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TOP NATIONAL NEWS

Originations of First-Lien Residential Loans Increase in 2Q
Here’s Where the Housing Market Is Headed on Its Way Into 2027
How Much will the Fannie & Freddie Conforming Loan Limit Change for 2027?
Data Center Boom Fueling Demand for Workforce Housing

UPCOMING EVENTS AND NEWS

Vetting Closing Agents and Real Estate Attorneys to Mitigate Risk, Aug. 6
UAD 3.6 Office Hours Part III, Aug. 10
AI Governance, Quality & Risk: A Practical Framework for Mortgage Lenders, Aug. 18

Accelerating Originations With Income and Employment Data (Sponsored by Equifax)

Discover how front-loading the mortgage lifecycle with automated income and employment verifications helps reduce costs and empower lenders with early debt-to-income (DTI) confidence.

Mortgage Affordability Doesn’t End at Closing (Sponsored by Truework, a Checkr company)

Truework's Randy Lightbody examines why refinance-dependent buyers challenge the mortgage industry's traditional understanding of affordability.

August 17, 2026

MAA Advocacy in August Toolkit

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Your legislators want to hear from you about the important issues facing the district, the state, and the country. This Mortgage Action Alliance toolkit aims to assist you in holding effective, virtual meetings with your legislators.

August 04, 2026

MBA Path to Opportunity Scholar Profile: Marlon Campbell

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Every scholarship tells a story. Through our Lift as You Climb campaign, we’re featuring Path to Opportunity Scholarship recipients whose experiences show how access to education creates lasting opportunity and inspires others to pay it forward.

July 31, 2026

MBA Economist Mike Fratantoni Reacts to Second-Quarter GDP Numbers

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The Bureau of Economic Analysis reported that real gross domestic product increased at an annual rate of 1.5% in the second quarter, according to the advance estimate. In the first quarter, real GDP increased 2.1%.

July 31, 2026

The AI Billing Shock: Why Soaring Token Costs Are Challenging Mortgage AI Assumptions

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IndiSoft LLC's Camillo Melchiorre says mortgage organizations can no longer treat AI as an unbounded utility. "Operational savings disappear when token costs exceed the labor they replace."

July 31, 2026

We Keep Debating the Price of the House. We Should Be Building the Road to It.

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Money Management International’s Helene Raynaud notes that affordability is one ingredient in the homeownership challenge. “Mortgage readiness is the on-ramp, and nonprofits are increasingly helping build it.”

July 31, 2026

MISMO to Launch FRAME Interactive Workshop, Put AI Governance Into Practice

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MISMO announced an interactive workshop focused on FRAME (Framework for Responsible AI in the Mortgage Ecosystem), MISMO’s mortgage-specific approach to AI governance. The workshop, sponsored by LucidTrust, will be held during MISMO's Summit on Aug. 25.

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One Voice. One Vision. One Resource. The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) is the national association representing the entire real estate finance industry. For more information visit us at our website.
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