Message from the Board

Fellow Alaska mortgage professionals,

The fireweed is slowly starting its turn to cotton, which by the old rule means about six weeks until termination dust shows up. Nobody in this business needs the reminder, of course. You can read the same thing off your pipeline. The files that came in during June are closing now, and the ones landing this week are the ones that have to fund before an appraiser's calendar tightens and the daylight starts going in earnest.

This is the unglamorous stretch of the year. Conditions. Follow-ups. A verification of employment that will not come back no matter how nicely you ask. It is also the stretch where somebody who has been renting for eleven years finally gets keys, on the timeline they were promised, because you stayed on it.

If a file is stuck, say so out loud to someone. This is a small industry in a very large state, and there is a decent chance the person two desks over, or two hundred miles over, has already untangled the exact thing in front of you.

All the best,

Benjamin Reynolds - President, Alaska Mortgage Bankers Association

Thank you to our AMBA Monday Morning News Sponsor

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News From Last Week

CFPB Closes Comment Window On TRID Timing And Tolerance Rewrite

The comment period on the CFPB's mortgage disclosure request for information closed Monday, August 10, under Docket No. CFPB-2026-0018. The Bureau issued the RFI on July 9 with 22 questions covering TRID timing, tolerance categories, the right of rescission, and reverse mortgage disclosures, framed as implementation of Executive Order 14393, signed March 13. National Mortgage Professional reported August 10 that the Community Home Lenders of America filed on the deadline, asking the Bureau to move third-party services chosen from a lender's written list into the no-limit tolerance category and to add transfer taxes to the 10% cumulative bucket. Nothing has been proposed or adopted. An RFI gathers information that may inform a future proposed rule.

Alaska Impact: The zero-tolerance and 10% buckets are where Alaska files strain. The RFI itself asks whether charges that cannot be determined within three business days of application belong in zero tolerance, and a Bethel or Kotzebue appraisal that requires a flight and an overnight is the version of that problem members here see most often. The cure comes out of the lender. The Legislative Affairs Committee is tracking the docket.

Alaska Labor Puts Peak LNG Construction Demand Near 8,600 Workers

The Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development released an updated Alaska LNG Project workforce analysis on August 10 (release No. 26-15), prepared by Northern Industrial Training LLC for the Alaska Workforce Investment Board. Peak construction demand could reach roughly 6,600 workers for Alaska LNG alone and approximately 8,600 statewide once concurrent projects including Donlin Gold, Graphite One, and the Port of Nome are counted. The department reported that projected demand exceeds current workforce and training output. Commissioner Cathy Muñoz said the state's focus now is aligning existing apprenticeship and career and technical education capacity with future industry needs.

Alaska Impact: Project construction income is not automatically unstable, and plenty of it is qualifying W-2 wages. The underwriting question is continuity. If Nikiski, Kenai, and Fairbanks fill with project hires over the next two years, expect more files where the borrower has changed employers, trades, or work locations inside the history window, and where per diem treatment turns on the specific program's rules. Rental demand in those markets could move too, which would show up in comparable rents before it shows up anywhere else.

Non-QM Clears Ten Percent Of July Locks As Conforming Slips

Non-qualified mortgages passed 10% of total rate-lock volume in July, up 1.4 percentage points from June, according to Optimal Blue's July 2026 Market Advantage report released Tuesday, August 11. Conforming loans fell to 47.3% of locks, down from 52.2% a year earlier. Investor and DSCR loans made up 33.5% of Non-QM production and bank statement loans 30.6%. Overall lock volume fell 11.4% from June as Optimal Blue's benchmark 30-year conforming rate rose 26 basis points to 6.72%. Average credit score across all July locks was 730.

Alaska Impact: Bank statement and DSCR are the products that fit an Alaska borrower list heavy on commercial fishing permits, lodge operators, guides, and air taxi owners. Without a competitive Non-QM investor on the shelf, a self-employed borrower in Homer or Sitka has fewer reasons to stay with a lender that cannot document their income structure. Optimal Blue also reported purchase pull-through dropped 2.4 points to 78.9%, so the files that need the most work are also the ones least likely to close.

Rates Fall To 6.67% After July Inflation Comes In Cool

The 30-year fixed averaged 6.67% in Freddie Mac's August 13 Primary Mortgage Market Survey, down from 6.69% and the first weekly decline in six weeks. The 15-year averaged 5.96%. The survey covers rates offered the prior Thursday through Wednesday, a stretch in which Treasury yields eased following the inflation release. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported August 12 that CPI rose 0.1% in July and 3.4% over twelve months, with core at 2.5%. Immediately after that release, traders trimmed the implied odds of a September rate increase to roughly 42%, according to CME Group's FedWatch reading of 30-day fed funds futures pricing. The federal funds target range stands at 3.5% to 3.75%.

Alaska Impact: MBA reported August 12 that applications rose 3.6% for the week ending August 7, with the refinance share at 40.7%. Two basis points is not a refi boom, but it is enough to justify running the payment again on the 2025 files sitting at 7% and above, particularly AHFC-eligible borrowers who have gained equity since.

Mortgage Delinquencies Ease Slightly While FHA Serious Delinquencies Climb

The overall mortgage delinquency rate fell to a seasonally adjusted 4.37% in the second quarter, down 7 basis points from the first quarter but up 44 basis points from a year earlier, according to MBA's National Delinquency Survey released August 13. Foreclosure inventory rose to 0.67%. The FHA delinquency rate was 11.79% and the VA rate 4.89%, both down slightly on the quarter. MBA reported that the seriously delinquent rate has risen for four consecutive quarters and that FHA serious delinquencies climbed 227 basis points year over year. MBA's Marina Walsh tied the pattern to recent labor market weakness and rising delinquency on student loans, credit cards, and auto loans.

Alaska Impact: FHA and VA carry a larger share of Alaska production than the national mix, given JBER, Eielson, and the Fairbanks and Anchorage first-time buyer market. Servicing shops should note the November 28 deadline to have VA's Partial Claim Program implemented in their systems, and start testing now rather than in October.

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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:

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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.

Welcome back for the 2026-2027 season:

Residential Mortgage

Email [email protected] or call (907) 727-1076 to find out how you can join!

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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:

Originator Assistant - Global CU Home Loans

Mortgage Loan Originator - Global CU Home Loans (multiple locations)

Residential Mortgage - Receptionist in Soldotna and MLOs in Anchorage

Thank you to our Career Board sponsor - First Rate Financial!

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