AMBA Monday Morning News - Week of August 31st, 2026 
Message from the Board
Fellow Alaska mortgage professionals,
It's the two-minute warning on that winter is almost here. Termination dust is on its way - there is even a frost advisory for The Bowl. If your desk looks like most desks in this state right now, you are trying to fund files while appraisers are booked out, sellers are still holding for the July number, and half your office is rearranging its day around school pickup again.
That crush is a good problem. It means people are still buying here, and it means somebody handed you the largest transaction of their life during the six weeks you had the least room for it.
Two things worth saying. First, the work you do between now and freeze-up carries a lot of Alaska households into winter, and being good at it is not a small thing. Second, almost nothing on your desk this week is new. Somebody in this industry has already solved it, and most of them will pick up the phone.
Now's the time to work together and hunker down before the snow comes for us all!
All the best,
Benjamin Reynolds - President, Alaska Mortgage Bankers Association
Thank you to our AMBA Monday Morning News Sponsor
News From Last Week
Alaska Led Every State in Annual Home Price Growth Last Quarter
Alaska posted the highest annual house price growth in the country at 8.3 percent, according to the FHFA House Price Index released August 25 covering the second quarter of 2026. Vermont was second at 7.3 percent, Hawaii third at 5.8 percent. Nationally, prices rose 2.1 percent over the year and 0.3 percent from the first quarter. Prices fell in four states, with New Mexico down 1.2 percent.
Alaska Impact: An 8.3 percent state figure is a useful market conditions data point, not a substitute for property-specific comparable sales. In Anchorage and the Mat-Su, pull comps early and make sure any market condition or time adjustment stands on its own support. The thing to guard against is the 2.1 percent national number becoming the default assumption on an Alaska file when the state index ran four times that.
Mukluk Fire Destroyed 50 Homes in Tok, Final Assessment Confirms
A structure assessment released August 30 by the Alaska Division of Forestry and Fire Protection confirmed 50 single residences destroyed by the Mukluk Fire, along with 108 outbuildings, garages, sheds, and workshops. That is up from the 44 primary residences reported August 25. The fire started August 17. Governor Dunleavy declared a state disaster for the Alaska Gateway REAA on August 20, activating public and individual assistance. Applications close October 19, and state assistance cannot duplicate insurance proceeds.
Alaska Impact: Tok is small by every count available: 1,243 residents in the 2020 Census, closer to 1,650 in more recent American Community Survey estimates, on a housing stock somewhere between roughly 700 and 810 units depending on the vintage you use. Fifty primary residences is a large share of that, in a town that has to rebuild before freeze-up. If you hold or service loans in the Southeast Fairbanks Census Area, confirm property status and insurance coverage this week, and check every affected file in process for a required post-disaster inspection or lender condition before clearing to close.
Seven Agencies Rescind Interagency Statement on Special Purpose Credit Programs
Seven federal agencies published a joint rescission of the February 2022 Interagency Statement on Special Purpose Credit Programs in the Federal Register on August 25. The CFPB, FDIC, OCC, NCUA, HUD, DOJ, and FHFA signed it. The Federal Reserve did not join the joint rescission; it withdrew its own CA 22-2 guidance on August 21. The agencies said federal law does not authorize generalized remedial equity initiatives absent specific findings of unlawful discrimination, and cautioned creditors against relying on the earlier guidance.
Alaska Impact: If your company runs an SPCP or was building one, the 2022 statement it was designed against is no longer guidance to lean on, and the CFPB's amended Regulation B governs, including new limits on programs offered by for-profit creditors. Regulation B still expressly provides for qualifying special purpose credit programs, and any program involving a governmental or nonprofit entity needs its own analysis under the applicable provisions rather than an assumption in either direction. Have counsel review any program that uses a protected characteristic in eligibility or targeting before the next application is taken. The Regulation B amendments took effect July 21 and are under challenge in federal court, with plaintiffs' summary judgment brief due September 29.
Thirty-Year Rate Held at 6.66% While Applications Slipped Again
Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey put the 30-year fixed at 6.66 percent on August 27, one basis point above the prior week and ten basis points above the same week in 2025. The 15-year averaged 5.98 percent. MBA weekly survey data released August 26 showed applications down 1.0 percent for the week ending August 21. The purchase index fell 0.3 percent seasonally adjusted and ran 5 percent below a year ago on an unadjusted basis. MBA's 30-year conforming rate was 6.78 percent, its highest in three weeks.
Alaska Impact: Freddie Mac's four August readings were 6.69, 6.67, 6.65, and 6.66, a four basis point range across the entire month. Say that out loud to a borrower waiting for a break the recent data does not yet signal. Purchase applications running 5 percent under last year is the number to plan against, and purchase season in Anchorage and Fairbanks thins out fast after October, so you have roughly two weeks to decide how you are staffing the fall.
FHA Extends Feedback Window on Partial Claim Reinstatement Draft
FHA extended its stakeholder feedback period to September 18 on the draft mortgagee letter for the Reinstatement Advance Payment Demonstration, announced in FHA INFO 2026-19 on August 25. The draft would let a servicer use an advance secured by the existing FHA-insured first mortgage, with the borrower's obligation documented through a repayment agreement, in place of the traditional separate partial claim note and subordinate mortgage. Participation would be voluntary. The draft is not policy and cannot be used on any FHA-insured loan until finalized.
Alaska Impact: The subordinate partial claim lien can complicate Alaska payoffs, assumptions, and refinances, particularly where lien release processing runs long in the recording district. If your shop has eaten that delay, the comment window is open through September 18 on HUD's Single Family Drafting Table.
Next Luncheon!
The NAR Settlement, Two Years On
The practice changes took effect August 17, 2024. Two years and six weeks later, AMBA opens the season with an update on where things actually stand, bringing together an industry panel with an agent, a lender, and a title representative on what has worked well and what has not.
Most of the 2024 predictions have now been tested. A Cotality and ResiClub survey conducted in February and March of 2026 found roughly two-thirds of agents reported no significant change in commission levels since the settlement. The appeals are also still live: a three-judge Eighth Circuit panel heard argument in St. Louis on January 14, 2026, with a decision expected in late summer or early fall.
The update covers where the settlement stands and what the practice changes have meant in practice. The panel is the rest of it. Three professionals who sit at different points in the same transaction, comparing notes on what they have figured out since 2024 and where the process still gets rough.
Alaska is a small market. The same people close most of the deals in a given community, which means the practical fixes tend to come from a conversation rather than a memo. This is that conversation, with the whole industry in the room instead of two of us at a closing table.
Who should come:
Loan officers, processors, underwriters, closers, and title staff. Realtor partners are welcome as guests, and this is the meeting of the year to bring one to.
Panel details coming soon. Moderated by AMBA President, Benjamin Reynolds
Luncheon Schedule:
Doors Open at 11:30 AM
Food Served at 11:45 AM
Meeting Starts at 12:00 PM
Meeting Ends at 1:00 PM
Reminder!!!
All member companies and employees have been added and have an account created. Login using your company email and, if this is your first time logging in, select the "Forgot Password" option to update your password. If there are any issues with logging in, please contact us at [email protected] or Benjamin Reynolds at [email protected].
This Month's Meeting Sponsor:
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Upcoming Events
Save the dates for the 2026-2027 Season!
It's that time of the year where we are able to announce dates for our 2026-2027 season here at AMBA. Dates are subject to change based on availability, speakers, special events, etc. As of August 10th, our upcoming schedule is going to be:
- September 30, 2026 - The NAR Settlement, Two Years On
- October 21, 2026 - Save the Date
- November 18, 2026 - VA Loans: The Myths, the Tricks, and the Files That Actually Close
- December 16, 2026 - Save the Date
- January 20, 2027 - 2026 Division of Banking and Securities Update w/ Tracy Reno and Autumn Miller
- February 17, 2027 - Save the Date
- March 17, 2027 - Save the Date
- April 21, 2027 - Save the Date
- May 19, 2027 - Save the Date
We have also made an update to this year's events. Along with a member discount on all events for this year, all named individual members will have free access to our virtual sessions! AMBA wants to make it even easier for members to join across Alaska and be a part of the conversation monthly.
That being said, renewal season is here. Membership renews September 1, 2026. Pricing has remained the same this year, however we will be moving our billing back to the beginning of September for everyone. Our experiment of annual billing caused tracking to be all over the place for the year and with a small volunteer board so we will be moving our main billing back to the beginning of the season and all new memberships throughout the year will be automatically prorated. Members that did have memberships later in 2026 will have their updated dues adjusted.
Rates and bands for 2026-2027:
The Board will be reaching out to members to confirm the bands for this year and will have invoices out by August 18th for renewal before September 1st. To add named seats, change a coordinator, or ask about your band, email [email protected] or call (907) 727-1076.
Welcome New Members!
AMBA has represented Alaska's mortgage industry since 1976. Membership is held by the company, and every person the company names gets a full seat: nine meetings a year - in person at a discount or virtual for free, a directory listing under their own name, committee eligibility including Legislative Affairs, and the Monday Morning News. Individual membership is available to professionals whose employer is not a member company.
Email [email protected] or call (907) 727-1076 to find out how you can join!
New Job Posts
Hiring in Alaska
AMBA members get access to post directly on AMBA's website for new prospective candidates. Sign in to your member account today to post your latest position.
Currently Hiring:
Escrow Officer and Assistant - First American Title
Mortgage Underwriter - First National Bank Alaska
Originator Assistant - Global CU Home Loans
Mortgage Loan Originator - Global CU Home Loans (multiple locations)
Residential Mortgage - Receptionist in Soldotna and MLOs in Anchorage
