Brokers are feeling optimistic about 2026, due in part to the expansion of non-qualified mortgage offerings.

The non-qualified mortgage sector has exhibited significant performance pressure over the past two years. The sector has not yet faced material losses, though.

Production of adjustable-rate mortgages declined slightly during the third quarter of 2025, but were up 40.7% through the first nine months of the year.

Joel Berner, a senior economist at Realtor.com, said renovated homes still catch buyers’ attention, but financing the cost of those improvements at today’s rates is less appealing to price-sensitive shoppers.

As short-term rental lending grows, a valuation management company launched a form to make the appraisal process more accurate.

Homeowners said in a recent Hometap survey that traditional home equity solutions do not fit their needs and they are looking for more flexible finance options.

The CFPB adjusted the appraisal exemption threshold; Velocity Financial agreed to sell UPB of non-performing loans and entered a third-party servicing mandate.

The non-agency mortgage-backed security market in 2026 is expected to grow with predictions of record issuance volumes.

Nearly 70% of all homebuyers in 2025 didn’t shop with multiple lenders for their mortgage, an increase from 62% in 2024.

Jayendran GS, CEO of Prudent AI, a mortgage tech provider, said the growing presence of AI in underwriting is alleviating some lender fear around the technology.