Originations of first-lien mortgages declined by 2.0% on a quarterly basis to an estimated $485.0 billion in the third quarter. Nine months into the year, lending was up 10.8% on an annual basis.

Purchase-mortgage lending in the coming years will be helped by an expected increase in the supply of homes for sale, according to projections by the MBA.

While most mortgage industry participants believe the tri-merge limits competition among the three credit reporting companies, some say it’s a critical tool to maintain the credit quality of mortgages.

The Trump administration plans to reduce certain capital requirements to encourage bank involvement in the mortgage market, according to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.

Better Home & Finance launched a wholesale lending platform for second liens.

Most industry participants don’t think the GSEs have the tools necessary to accelerate construction by big homebuilders.

Certain mortgage companies are comfortable using AI voice bots to interact with borrowers, seeing gains in efficiency. Others are using the technology in non-customer-facing activities.

Chase increased its production by 3.7% during the third quarter, helped by correspondent lending. BofA posted an even more modest increase and production was down at other large banks.

Fifth Third believes mortgages are key to establishing long-term customer relationships that include multiple financial services.

The new option allows tri-merge resellers to calculate and deliver FICO scores directly to customers, bypassing the big credit bureaus. Experian countered with a move involving VantageScore 4.0.