AI Assistant, eSignature, Subservicing, AI Adoption Products; VA Servicing and Loss Mit Update

Artificial intelligence is all the rage in conferences and webinars, and today’s Advisory Angle at 2PM ET, powered by STRATMOR Group. Sue Woodard and Garth Graham break down the biggest takeaways from ICE Experience 2026 and what they mean for lenders right now. The discussion focuses on borrower expectations, AI adoption, and how leading organizations are aligning strategy with long-term outcomes. Tomorrow’s "Mortgage Matters: The Weekly Roundup” presented by Lenders One, has the CHLA’s Scott Olsen discussing how and what independent mortgage bankers are doing in the current AI, regulatory, and origination environment. (Today’s podcast can be found here and this week’s ‘casts are sponsored by JazzX, the first true end-to-end AI platform built for mortgage. From application to underwriting, JazzX is a new operating model that helps you scale growth, boost productivity, and transform how your team performs. Hear an interview with Moder’s Erik Andersen on the company’s strategic partnership with Palantir Technologies to co-build an AI-powered mortgage operations platform.)

Products, Services, and Software for Brokers and Lenders

“AI in mortgage is everywhere, but where is it actually driving real results versus just hype? Join JazzX AI for on Monday, April 20th at 1PM ET/10AM PT for our webinar AI in Mortgage: From Pilot to Production - How Leading Lenders Are Deploying AI Today. We’ll be joined by leaders from across the industry to unpack how they’re prioritizing AI use cases, measuring ROI, and turning early experiments into meaningful impact. You’ll hear candid lessons on what’s working, what’s not, and how teams are thinking about time-to-value as AI adoption accelerates. Reserve your spot today to hear how leading lenders are turning AI into real results.”

Servbank is gearing up to attend the MBA Secondary & Capital Markets Conference & Expo, happening May 17–20 in New York City, one of the industry’s must‑attend events for secondary and capital markets professionals. The conference brings together market makers, agency leaders, and key experts for fresh market outlooks, policy updates, and high‑value networking. As an organization focused on powering lenders with technology‑driven subservicing and strong performance, Servbank looks forward to connecting and supporting discussions that move the market forward. To learn more about how Servbank can support your success, reach out now to schedule time to meet.

Expand Your Reach with Pennymac TPO’s non-QM Suite! Pennnymac TPO’s new Non-QM Product Suite (DSCR, A+, A, & A-) offers flexible solutions to help capture business that traditional Agency guidelines leave behind. For self-employed entrepreneurs to first time and seasoned investors, our programs empower you to say “yes” more often. Our expanded lineup includes: DSCR, 12- or 24-months Bank Statements, 1- or 2-years Full Documentation, WVOE, 1-year 1099, and two Asset Based programs - Asset Depletion and Asset Qualifier. Grow your pipeline and provide modern lending solutions to a wider range of clients. Contact your Pennymac TPO Account Executive or become a partner today to get started.

“Reinventing the Future of Homeowner Care. Cenlar is continually raising the bar on homeowner care, and our newest innovation supports that commitment. Our Intelligent Voice Assistant is our most advanced bot to date and supports how we assist homeowners through automated, informational interactions. This digital solution is designed to deliver a consistent and user-friendly experience. The bot handles high volume, routine homeowner inquiries, such as general questions related to servicing notices (including RESPA transfer notices), with speed and consistency. By managing these frequent informational interactions, it allows our contact center advisors to focus on more complex or case specific issues that require individualized service. To learn more about our technology and how we can partner with you, connect with Matt Detwiller, Senior Vice President of Business Development.

Nobody wants a borrower experience held together with duct tape and crossed fingers. In a recent blog, LenderLogix breaks down why the real eSignature risk is not just whether you offer it, but whether it lives natively inside the point of sale or in a disconnected third-party workflow. For Encompass® lenders, it is a good reminder that a native point of sale should do more than collect applications. It should keep critical moments like eSignature inside the experience too. Read the blog here.

The future of mortgage sales isn’t more calls… It’s better conversations. Total Expert’s AI Sales Assistant engages every lead instantly with human-like, context-aware dialogue that listens, adapts, and moves borrowers forward. Powered by Customer Intelligence, it brings real-time signals, like rate changes, equity shifts, and credit activity, into every interaction, giving AI the context to engage at the right moment with the right message. No missed opportunities. No dropped follow-ups. Just intelligent, insight-driven engagement that uncovers intent and surfaces real opportunities for loan officers. This is how modern lenders win: turning data into action and every conversation into momentum. See it in action.

Today also has a show focused on origination, Mortgage Pros, at 2PM ET, featuring Audrey Boissonou and Kevin Casey.

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.

VA Accounts for 15-20 Percent of Apps, and…

VA loans have advantages, and more advantages for those who qualify, of course. How does this story grab you? NPR writes, “More than 10,000 veterans lost their homes to foreclosure since May of last year, when the Trump administration shut down a key safety net in the VA home loan program, according to the latest industry data. That is the highest pace of foreclosures for VA loans in a decade. Another 90,000 vets are heading toward foreclosure. This comes after a years-long debacle inside the Department of Veterans Affairs has whiplashed thousands of vets between various enacted and canceled programs and left many of them on the brink of losing their homes, often through no fault of their own.”

To some it seems sensationalist. Whether the straight truth or a “hatchet job,” it is important to understand what is going on.

Fairway’s Chief Credit Officer Scott Fletcher weighed in with a solid summary of the current situation to help clear up confusion. “The VA has proposed a new five-year partial claim program as a default management tool, following legislation enacted by Congress last year. This initiative is intended to address a longstanding gap, as GNMA/VA servicers have not had access to a partial claim option since 2022. The program is designed to strengthen loss mitigation efforts and help veterans avoid foreclosure. Further details are provided in the draft VA Servicer Handbook, Chapter 22: VA’s Drafting Table website.

“The legislation authorizes the VA to advance funds to cure a borrower’s delinquency by purchasing a portion of the loan balance, up to 25% of the unpaid principal. This amount is structured as a subordinate, deferred obligation that does not accrue interest and does not require monthly payments. Instead, repayment is deferred until a triggering event occurs, such as payoff of the primary mortgage, loan maturity, sale of the property, refinance, or other termination of the loan. As outlined in the draft guidance (see attached), this approach enables servicers to reinstate delinquent loans while reducing immediate financial strain on borrowers. The partial claim authority is limited to a five-year period from the date of enactment.”

The VA does have its own internal (OWNED) portfolio, and only the VA has insight into that. But people are questioning how NPR calculated its numbers. If you look at VASP (Veterans Affairs Servicing Purchase program), it has approximately 35,000 loans, and 40 percent of those VASP loans were DQ upon the final transfer. Borrowers have had their loans modified down to 2.50 percent, however, and they still could not pay. Nowhere in the NPR does it remind the reader that a mortgage is a contract. And servicers know that 90 days DQ results in a Notice of Default. If the borrower fails to pay for 6-12-18 months, they go into foreclosure. That is the law which reputable servicers follow.

Perhaps the NPR number is somewhat true if you look at filings. Foreclosure filings are up month over month. but those in the industry know that only about 15 percent of filings actually result in a foreclosure. As Carrington’s Nolan Turner points out, “The other 85 percent of borrowers sell their house, receive a “mod,” or find somebody to assume their loans. If you look at the filings, it is a few thousand (1,000-3,000) a month.”

Capital Markets

Markets are highly sensitive to headlines and political signals, with cautious optimism emerging around a potential 45-day ceasefire in the Middle East that could ease the current single-factor trading regime. However, after President Trump signaled that an escalation of American attacks on Iran could come as soon as today, U.S. Treasuries opened the week with a modest yield curve divergence, as longer-dated bonds recovered prior losses while the short end remained under pressure following a stronger-than-expected March jobs report from Friday.

While headline labor data showed solid payroll growth and a lower unemployment rate, softer wage growth and a slight decline in hours worked pointed to underlying moderation in income momentum. Resilient labor market data has reinforced the underlying strength of the U.S. economy and given policymakers greater flexibility to remain patient as geopolitical risks evolve. Attention should turn toward imminent political updates, including presidential remarks that could shape near-term risk appetite, while economic releases like ISM Services are expected to play a secondary role.

Inflation expectations, as reflected in the 5-year forward rate, remain stable and largely unchanged despite geopolitical tensions, suggesting investors are not yet alarmed. Keep in mind that history indicates such expectations tend to lag actual inflation trends. Meanwhile, the U.S. mortgage-backed securities market has staged a rebound, with its best weekly performance in months last week, recovering nearly all war-related losses. Spreads have tightened across key products, valuations appear roughly in line with investment-grade corporates, but slightly rich versus Treasuries, and shorter-duration assets continue to attract demand amid uncertainty, with selective opportunities emerging in higher-coupon and lower-payup pools. Overall, the environment favors a defensive posture focused on capital preservation, even as improving technicals and seasonal factors point to a near-term pickup in prepayment activity.

Today’s economic calendar kicked off with the previously delayed February durable goods orders (old pre-war news). Later today brings Redbook same store sales, the NY Fed’s Survey of Consumer Expectations for March, and consumer credit for February. Treasury activity will be headlined by $58 billion 3-year notes, and two Fed speakers are currently scheduled: Chicago’s President Goolsbee and Vice Chair Jefferson. We begin the day with Agency MBS prices roughly unchanged from Monday’s close, the 2-year yielding 3.84, and the 10-year yielding 4.33 after closing yesterday at 4.33 percent.