Loans with balances above the baseline conforming loan limit accounted for 16.4% of total originations in the first quarter of 2026.

The decline in issuance was driven by refinances, with refi volume off 16.8% on a monthly basis.

The agencies securitized $30.31 billion of rate-term refis in May, a 32.6% decline from April.

FHA published a request for information seeking ways to ease its minimum property requirements.

Overall, refinance business was down compared with the fourth quarter of 2025, though FHA refi volume increased by 6.1% due to FHA-to-FHA refi activity.

FHA noted that federal law prohibits providing federal financial assistance to individuals with delinquent child support.

FHA expects to rescind a suite of policies next month as a continuation of its deregulatory approach to tackling affordability, said FHA Deputy Assistant Secretary for Single-Family Housing Matt Jones.

The spread between conventional loans and FHA and VA loans last quarter were at their widest margins since 2021, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s National Delinquency Survey.

April issuance was the highest monthly total since June 2022, when the market was coming down from the euphoria of the COVID-19 rally.