“Mortgage lenders benefited from multiple refinance rallies over the last nine months, but we don’t expect another in 2026,” said Eric Orenstein, a senior director at Fitch Ratings.
During a press conference Wednesday, Fed Chair Kevin Warsh suggested that he will wait to see recommendations from the new task forces before making any major changes at the Fed.
Rocket Mortgage and Cenlar remained the largest subservicers — by far, as of the end of March, though the firms ranked third and fourth gained some ground during the first quarter of 2026.
An analysis of earnings reports from 18 lenders showed combined income from production and secondary market rose to $2.75 billion in the first quarter, a 5.0% increase from the previous period.
“Two-thirds of mortgage holders compared quotes from multiple lenders during their most recent mortgage-shopping process, but only 54% attempted to negotiate,” according to LendingTree.
“The existing home sales data reflects momentum that was building earlier this spring, when buyers briefly benefited from improved affordability and greater purchasing power,” said Kamini Lane, CEO and president of Coldwell Banker Realty.
“Regardless of who wins the bid, the consequences of this is market-disrupting for anyone who does not have the capital to build up servicing and/or the technology leadership to take advantage of it,” said Rick Roque, a consultant with Menlo Company.
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