- InGeniusly Speaking
- Posts
- + $246
+ $246
By Jeff Walton & Kelly Guest
As IMB profits and home prices are going up according to the Mortgage Bankers Association and First American respectively, the population at Fannie Mae went down by about 12 last week. New American Funding is doing some human elimination of its own as it announced the deployment of voice AI agents to take phone calls, so it’ll be interesting to see if borrowers find it to be helpful and convenient or if they run screaming “Representative!” to other lenders.
Table of Contents
CHATTER
A Smaller Fannie: FHFA Director Bill Pulte Confirms Fannie Firings on X
The post doesn’t name names, but various outlets estimate that 12 higher level posts were eliminated across various aspects of the business.
Another hat in the TPO ring
We Won’t Steal Your Clients – We Promise: Evergreen Launches BrokerBrand TPO
At the heart of BrokerBrand TPO is a simple belief: the broker's relationship with the borrower should always remain the broker's relationship. Every aspect of the TPO channel is intentionally designed to support brokers—not compete with them. From application through closing and beyond, BrokerBrand TPO is committed to helping brokers remain the trusted advisor for their clients throughout the homeownership journey.
Talk to the Bot: New American Funding to Use Kastle AI to Talk to Customers
Kastle’s Voice AI technology will handle end-to-end customer interactions, reduce hold times, ensure compliance, and provide a fast 24/7 self-service channel. The AI agents enable New American Funding to take more calls while freeing up its operations teams to focus on complex client situations.
“Kastle AI enables us to serve each customer with greater speed and consistency throughout the life of their loan. As a pioneer in AI enablement for our borrowers and employees, we chose Kastle for its ability to tailor AI agents to our needs, with the flexibility to test and refine each solution before it goes live. This approach helps us deliver a high level of customer service and ensures that our team is available for the conversations that require a human touch.” - Christy Bunce, President - New American Funding
Community Home Lenders of American (CHLA) Says IMBs Should Get FHLB Membership
The organization submitted a comment letter to FHFA, asking for guardrails on approvals of new products for the Federal Home Loan Banks and asking the FHLBs to expand membership to include IMBs.
Suits Against Veteran’s United Get Big Judicial Haircut: HW
Judge dismissed most of the deceptive practices claims, but allowed some RESPA claims to move forward (allegedly 35% of agent commissions kicked back).
85% report profitability
IMB Profits Up in Q226: MBA
Independent mortgage banks (IMBs) and mortgage subsidiaries of chartered banks reported a pre-tax net production profit of $973 on each loan they originated in Q226, compared to a net production profit of $727 per loan in Q126, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) newly released Quarterly Mortgage Bankers Performance Report.
Key Findings of MBA’s Second-Quarter 2026 Quarterly Mortgage Bankers Performance Report include:
The average pre-tax production profit was 25bps in Q226, compared to profit of 16 bps in the first quarter of 2026. The average quarterly pre-tax production profit, from the second quarter of 2008 to the most recent quarter, is 39 basis points.
The average production volume was $689M per company in the second quarter, up from $621M per company in the first quarter of 2026 and up from $636M one year ago. The volume by count per company averaged 1,958 loans in Q2, up from 1,729 loans in Q126, and up from 1,862 loans YoY.
On a per-loan basis, production revenues increased to $11,909 per loan in Q2, down from $12,626 per loan in Q1.
Total loan production expenses – commissions, compensation, occupancy, equipment, and other production expenses and corporate allocations – decreased to 308 basis points in the second quarter of 2026 from 336 basis points in the first quarter.
Per-loan costs decreased to $10,936 per loan in the second quarter, down from $11,898 per loan in the first quarter. From the second quarter of 2008 to last quarter, loan production expenses have averaged $7,945 per loan.
The purchase share of first mortgage originations, by dollar volume, was 80%. For the mortgage industry as a whole, MBA estimates the purchase share was at 63% in the second quarter of 2026.
Servicing net financial income for Q2 (without annualizing) was $80 per loan serviced, up from $77 per loan serviced in Q1. Servicing operating income, which excludes MSR amortization, gains/loss in the valuation of servicing rights net of hedging gains/losses, and gains/losses on the bulk sale of MSRs, was $85 per loan serviced in Q2, down from $93 per loan serviced in Q1.
Including all business lines (both production and servicing), 85% of the firms in the report posted pre-tax net financial profits in Q226, up from 76% in Q126.
MOVING & SHAKING
REAL-LY Massive: Shareholders Approve Real-RE/MAX Deal
Securityholders of both companies approved Real’s proposed acquisition of RE/MAX Holdings at their respective special meetings of securityholders held today.
Upon closing, the combined company will operate as Real REMAX Group, a holding company that brings together Real’s technology-powered brokerage platform and entrepreneurial community with REMAX’s iconic global brand and franchise network. (Deal includes Motto Mortgage)
“Today’s vote is an important milestone for REMAX franchise owners and the broader REMAX network. This combination provides the opportunity to strengthen the value for Broker/Owners and their agents while preserving the entrepreneurial culture, local leadership and trusted REMAX brand that have fueled success for more than 50 years.” - Erik Carlson, CEO of RE/MAX Holdings
Rocket Companies appointed Sarah Watterson as Independent Board Director, bringing the headcount to 10 members.
AI-powered verification platform for high-stakes decisions Checkr, today announced its acquisition of Truv, a leader in consumer-permissioned income, employment, and asset verification. Checkr adds Truv as it continues its pursuit across a $45 billion market opportunity in identity, workforce, mortgage, and tenant verifications.
MARKET/INDUSTRY
A Treasury twist? What will Warsh's word be at Jackson Hole? Check out Bill Bodnar's latest Master the Markets segment and find out what you need to watch this week.
Mortgage Rates Decline for Second Consecutive Week: Freddie 8-20-26
Mortgage Applications Decreased 0.4% from One Week Earlier: MBA Weekly Survey for the week ending 8-14-26.
Mortgage applications for new home purchases were down 1% MoM and 5.7% YoY in July, according to MBA’s Builder App Survey (BAS).
“Purchase activity for newly built homes slowed in July, with both applications to purchase and the estimated number of new home sales falling behind last year’s pace. With new-home inventory still elevated, weaker demand likely reflects increased homebuyer sensitivity to higher mortgage rates. The annualized sales pace decreased for the third time in four months and at 647,000 units, fell below the average sales pace of 664,000 units during the first six months of the year.” - Joel Kan, CMB, MBA’s Vice President and Deputy Chief Economist
Really appreciating?
Creeping Back Up: First American’s June HPI
Annual house price appreciation accelerated for the second month in a row, but remained below 1% for the tenth consecutive month.
“The housing market is quietly inching back toward price growth. Annual appreciation reached its fastest pace since last August, while also becoming more broad based, with more than half of the markets we track once again posting annual price gains. The key reason is that inventory growth has slowed, after a year of rising supply helped keep price appreciation in check. In the second half of the year, if supply stops improving while demand remains steady, home price appreciation is likely to continue gaining momentum.” - Mark Fleming, First American Chief Economist
A Peek at Pendings: NAR June PHS
Month-Over-Month
· 2.3% decrease in pending home sales
· Declines in all regions
Year-Over-Year
· 2.2% decrease in pending home sales
· Gains in the Midwest; Declines in the Northeast, South and West
“Job gains should bring more buyers into the market, especially if mortgage rates stabilize or decline, though that impact takes time to show up. Right now, pending contracts are 30% below their pre-pandemic 2019 level, while payroll employment is 5% above. That gap points to sizable pent-up demand that should be unleashed in the coming years as more supply reaches the market and affordability improves.” – NAR Chief Economist Dr. Lawrence Yun
Fewer Cash Sales: Cash Buyer Report – Realtor.com
Cash sales overall are on the decline in the national housing market: They accounted for 31.4% of sales in the first four months of the year, compared to 32.3% to start 2025.
Military and vets are gung-ho
Ready to Roll: Veteran's United Q226 State of Mind Survey
Homebuyer optimism is strong heading into the latter half of 2026, and Veterans report their highest financial confidence in the survey's three-year history.
Among all prospective buyers, 73% plan to purchase within the next year and 62% say buying a home feels within reach.
Rather than waiting for the perfect market, Veterans are moving faster than the broader buyer pool by embracing a "buy now, refinance later" approach.
AI has become a standard part of the homebuying process, and Veterans are using it to prepare financially through savings and credit planning.