Verification, Licensing Tools; Correspondent News; Fed Chair Nominee Kevin Warsh

There’s a lot of sensible thinking going on out there in our biz. Yesterday in the Thought Leadership section, attorney Mitch Kider addressed the “Rule of Law” and what he believes is important to the industry. In a new article featured in Chrisman Commentary's Thought Leadership, David Spector challenges the rate-centric view of housing affordability, arguing that the real strain comes from a tight housing supply pipeline, local zoning and permitting roadblocks, and tax policies that shape who can afford to own versus invest. He examines how transaction costs, insurance, property taxes, and operational inefficiencies quietly inflate monthly payments, and why lowering mortgage origination friction, modernizing appraisal and title practices, and revisiting pricing policies could meaningfully ease borrower burden without adding risk. Read the full article to unpack where these pressures originate and what coordinated changes could shift the trajectory. (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 Prudent AI’s Suha Zehl on moving certainty to the front of the lending process to reduce operational friction, eliminate late-stage surprises, and allow lenders to scale volume, protect margins, and serve complex borrowers without adding staff.)

Products, Services, and Software for Brokers and Lenders

“Truework is a comprehensive income and employment verification platform that fully replaces manual in-house waterfalls and provides mortgage lenders with a single automated solution to run their verification processes. With Truework, lenders see up to 50 percent cost savings on verifications while increasing speed, accuracy, and R&W relief. We also offer free pre-approvals to help you qualify borrowers faster… Only pay when we complete a file. Trusted by 4 of the top 5 lenders in the U.S., Truework is built to deliver results. Learn more.”

“Scaling a mortgage company shouldn’t feel harder than closing loans. LicensingStore helps entrepreneurs build their mortgage businesses and executes the licensing, compliance, audit support, and post-closing loan file QC needed to scale with confidence. Our team is made up of industry veterans and mortgage professionals who understand growth pressure, expansion timelines, and regulatory risk because we’ve lived it. From company formation to multi-state expansion and ongoing compliance, we help clients stay focused on revenue while we protect the foundation. Ready to grow through strategic partnership with expertise? Contact our sales team to start the conversation or call 877-809-1212.”

On today’s Last Word at 1PM ET, Brian Vieaux, Kevin Peranio, Coby Hakalir, and Christy Soukhamneut sit down to discuss the new Fed Chair nominee as well as what’s really happening in the mortgage world. They bring their own experiences, opinions, and even a little debate to the biggest stories, from market shifts and new rules to the technology and ideas changing how we work.

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.

Correspondent and Wholesaler News

Sometimes the news in the last week or three doesn’t fit into any particular bucket. Who’s doing what out there?

Cardinal Financial Third-Party Origination has officially launched its Non-Delegated Correspondent program, designed to help independent mortgage lenders scale with transparency, speed, and control. “The program allows approved Non-Delegated Correspondents to originate loans in their own name while using Cardinal Financial’s loan technology, Octane®. Octane handles underwriting, pricing, and more to streamline operations without sacrificing clarity or control.

“The launch of this program builds on a year of growth within Cardinal Financial’s Third-Party Origination division, which has introduced several new options to expand opportunity and flexibility for brokers. This includes Cardinal Complete, a full-service loan processing solution that streamlines workflow and enhances profitability, and a suite of Non-QM products, offering flexible solutions for clients with non-traditional income sources. Alongside its Non-Delegated Correspondent program, these initiatives reflect Cardinal Financial’s commitment to empowering partners through smarter technology, broader product access, and a more seamless path to growth.”

AmeriHome advised that at this time, they are not participating in the Broad Production Period due to additional internal work and readiness of outside vendors. The Broad Production Period spans from January 26, 2026, through November 1, 2026. Details are available in AmeriHome Announcement 20260103-CL.

Citi Correspondent Lending posted Bulletin 2026-01 containing credit policy updates, Flood Certification fee changes and other notices, Combined Flood and Hazard Insurance escrow policies and other clarifications.

Recent agency announcements are in effective immediately for all Newrez Correspondent loans in the pipeline, unless otherwise noted. Additionally, Newrez posted clarifications and/or corrections to the Newrez Guides as of January 22, 2026, and updates to the Product Summaries and/or Overlay Matrix. Correspondents are advised to use announcements as guidance until all applicable underwriting guides are published.

Newrez Correspondent announced an enhancement to its SmartSelf Initial Income Calculation Process effective for loans registered on or after January 16, 2026. Check out SmartSelf – Bank Statement Income Calculation Job Aid. Also available, SmartSelf – Bank Statement Recorded Training.

United Wholesale Mortgage (UWM) and the USPBL, a Michigan-based independent professional baseball league, announced a 10-year naming rights partnership. “As part of this agreement, the league's ballpark located in downtown Utica Michigan will be renamed to UWM Field, and the league will rebrand its name to USPBL powered by Mortgage Matchup, previously known as USPBL powered by UWM.”

Capital Markets

This morning President Trump announced that he will nominate Kevin Warsh for Federal Reserve chair to succeed Jerome Powell. Although it is a nomination process, it is expected that Warsh will sail through. Markets showed little reaction to the news, and traders are still pricing in at most two more cuts this year before the benchmark fed funds rate lands around 3 percent, which policymakers have indicates is the long-run “neutral” rate that neither boosts nor hinders economic growth. 

U.S. Treasuries and MBS prices rallied yesterday, with gains across the curve pushing 5- and 10-year yields back below their 200-day moving averages despite an early dip after slightly weaker-than-expected jobless claims (which dipped slightly to 209k while continuing claims fell to their lowest level since September 2024), flat productivity data (unchanged at a strong 4.9 percent and unit labor costs down 1.9 percent), and a wider trade deficit (posing a drag on Q4 GDP). Bond yields ultimately finished the day near session highs even after a soft $44 billion 7-year Treasury auction.

Today’s economic calendar kicked off with the rescheduled December Producer Price Index. The PPI is viewed as old as news as it came in at +3.0 percent year over year, a touch higher than expected and up .5 percent month over month. Later today brings Chicago PMI for January, and Fed remarks resume following Wednesday’s Fed events, including from St. Louis’ Musalem and vice chair for supervision Bowman. Earnings also continue from Wall Street. We begin the day with Agency MBS prices slightly worse from Thursday’s close after the producer price numbers, the 2-year yielding 3.56, and the 10-year yielding 4.26 after closing yesterday at 4.23 percent.