Lender and Broker Services, Products, and Software “At Optimal Blue, we’d like to take a moment to say THANK YOU to the incredible clients and partners who made this year unforgettable. Your trust and collaboration fuel our mission to deliver solutions that tackle the real-world challenges mortgage lenders face every day. As we look ahead, we’re excited to keep innovating and driving success together. And speaking of what’s next, don’t miss Optimal Blue Summit 2026 this February in Scottsdale! It’s your chance to connect, learn, and preview a slate of new innovations from Optimal Blue that will help you dominate the year ahead. Secure your discounted ticket now with code CHRISMAN at Summit.OptimalBlue.com. From all of us at Optimal Blue, we wish you a joyful holiday season and a prosperous new year. Here’s to making 2026 your best year yet: see you at the Summit!” In an open letter reflecting on a landmark 2025, Polly Founder and CEO Adam Carmel shares a powerful message of gratitude and strategic evolution. The company has spent the past year leading the market in enterprise innovation and Generative AI, continuing to demonstrate that the era of stagnant, legacy tech is over. This is more than a milestone report; it’s a call to action for an industry at a crossroads. Carmel reflects on the profound impact and shared success achieved alongside Polly’s customer partners and looks ahead to a 2026 centered on intentional innovation and new product frontiers. Whether you’re a long-time partner or industry observer, this letter offers a transparent look at the future of capital markets technology. Read the full open letter to explore Polly’s 2025 milestones and their bold vision for the year ahead.

Although Freddie Mac’s weekly mortgage rate survey (released today) suggested the lowest rates since October 2024, our daily numbers offer a bit more nuance. To be sure, October 28th and September 16th both saw distinctly lower rates this year.   Today’s rates are right in line with yesterday’s as well as last Friday’s.  In other words, this week is flat compared to Friday although the average rate is lower so far. The bond market closes early today and will be fully closed tomorrow. Bonds reopen on Friday and then will be fully open for a normal week of trading next week. [thirtyyearmortgagerates]

Human traders may be extremely underrepresented on today’s half-day trading session, but the robots/algos know what to do with a sub-200k Jobless Claims print.  Robots are also not smart enough to know that the sub-200k print is likely distorted…

The professionals can’t originate loans in their local cities for various stretches, following a federal judge’s ruling granting most of the lender’s wishes.

National home prices grew monthly and annually in October, but considerably less than last year, according to S&P Dow Jones Indices.

Three U.S. senators opened an inquiry into insurance ratings firm Demotech and whether its assessments may be exposing taxpayers to growing risks tied to climate-driven insurer failures.

The new regulation, which passed overwhelmingly in the state legislature, would allow insurers to remove wildfire protections from standard homeowners policies.

New Jersey-based OceanFirst Financial slid in its planned $579 million acquisition of Flushing Financial just before the end of the year. The private equity firm Warburg Pincus is also participating in the transaction.

Loan originators are acutely aware of demographics (“know your borrower,” right?). Naming generations is relatively recent, and then-People Magazine Editor Landon Y. Jones coined the term Baby Boomer. (He died last year.) The oldest Baby Boomers turn 80 in 2026. By the end of this decade, all baby boomers will be 65 and older, and the number of people 80 and over will double in 20 years. Do you have loan products for them? Without any immigration, the U.S. population will start shrinking in five years. VP JD Vance is among those pushing for an increase in fertility. Vance has suggested giving parents more voting power, according to their numbers of children, or giving low-interest loans to married parents and tax exemptions to women who have four children or more. (Recall that last year JD Vance recommended giving votes to all children in this country but let’s give control over those votes to the parents of those children.) All of these trends and statements do, or could, impact every residential lender. (Today’s podcast can be found here and this week’s are sponsored by the Refi Recapture Engine from LO Autopilot. Did you know lenders lose 80 percent of refi recapture? The Refi Recapture Engine triples recapture volume and delivers refi-ready borrowers to your LOs on a silver platter. They’re so confident in the ROI they let you try before you buy. Contact them for a demo. Hear an interview with consultant Jeremy Potter on when companies should use external labor, why LinkedIn is an intellectual isolation ward, and final thoughts from the year that was in mortgage.)

Mortgage rates continue operating in an excruciatingly narrow range near their lowest levels of the past few years. Yesterday was the 6th best day of 2025. Today is tied for 7th place after rates moved 0.01% higher on average. While the underlying bond market is fully open today, it’s a slow time of year in terms of volume and volatility. Bigger movement becomes more likely by the end of next week thanks to the return of important economic reports and stronger trader participation after holiday absences.