Message from the Board

Fellow Alaska mortgage professionals,

By the middle of October the termination dust has usually worked its way down the Chugach, and everybody in Anchorage reads it the same way. The clock is running. In this business that means something specific: foundations poured, final inspections done before the ground locks up, and the appraiser who covers the more remote locations are watching the weather reports as closely as the comps.

October is also when the year starts to show its shape. You know which files carried you, which referral partners showed up, and which borrowers are going to wait for spring. Some of you had a lean summer. Some of you are closing more than you planned for. Most of you are somewhere in between, and tired.

Rest where you can find it. Then go finish the files that can close before freeze-up, and call a colleague when one gets stuck. Whoever picks up has probably seen it before.

All the best,

Benjamin Reynolds - President, Alaska Mortgage Bankers Association

Thank you to our AMBA Monday Morning News Sponsor

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Next Luncheon!

The Mat-Su Tax Ballot: What Propositions B, C and D Mean for Your Files

Mat-Su voters decide November 3 whether the borough gets its first areawide sales tax. If Proposition C passes, owner-occupied homes in the Valley can apply to take $75,000 off their taxable value, and a 1% tax at the register pays for it. Cheyenne Heindel, the borough’s finance director, ran the numbers. On October 21, thirteen days before the vote, she walks you through them.

Three of the four propositions on the Mat-Su ballot involve money. Proposition B adds a 5% tax on retail alcohol sales starting April 1, 2027. Proposition C pairs the 1% sales tax with the $75,000 property tax exemption. Proposition D gives the borough areawide power to buy right-of-way and build roads, which the borough’s own explainer says could add pressure on areawide property taxes once projects are approved.

Proposition C is the one that reaches your files. The borough projects about $21 million a year from the sales tax and a $12 million to $15 million drop in property tax revenue, depending on how many homeowners apply. That last part matters: the exemption takes an application. It also does not stack. A homeowner already on a senior or disabled veteran exemption gets no added relief and still pays the sales tax.

Heindel will cover what each proposition does, when it would take effect, and what it changes on a Valley tax bill. Bring the questions your borrowers are already asking. When does a new exemption first show up in an escrow analysis? What happens at closing when the seller had the exemption and the buyer hasn’t filed? Why does a renter in Wasilla pay the tax but get none of the break?

Working in Anchorage, Fairbanks or Soldotna? Mat-Su property owners paid 8.485 mills areawide last year, and the Assembly spent most of 2026 arguing about how to move some of that off homeowners. Every Alaska borough leaning on property tax faces the same question. This is a worked example with real numbers attached.

AMBA takes no position on any of these propositions. Heindel is presenting the borough’s analysis, and the vote is yours. Join us in the Valley or on Zoom.

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

LOCATION:

Mat-Su Visitor Center - Susitna Room
2764 S E Matanuska Spur
Palmer, AK 99645

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:

JOIN US AS A SPONSOR TODAY

Learn more about Catering Sponsorship and Venue Sponsorship by clicking on the appropriate link. Contact us at [email protected] for more information or sign up using the associated registration.

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News From Last Week

FHA Sets January Start for VantageScore 4.0 and FICO 10T

FHA issued Mortgagee Letter 2026-11, dated October 8, letting lenders submit VantageScore 4.0 and FICO 10T alongside Classic FICO for case numbers assigned on or after January 1, 2027. Under the letter, each borrower's score is the lowest of the scores selected from every model submitted, and the same models must be used for all borrowers. The 500 and 580 thresholds stay, and so does the tri-merge requirement. HUD published a preparedness guide with the letter.

Alaska Impact: Submitting a second model can lower a borrower's decision score but never raise it, so compare before you choose. HUD says the new models draw on rent and utility history, which may matter for a thin-file borrower in Bethel or Kotzebue who has paid rent for years. Ask your credit vendor and LOS administrator now whether both scores will be on reports by January.

Anchorage Assembly Pushes MMHOP Zoning Decision to November 4

After about four hours of public testimony, the Anchorage Assembly voted Wednesday, October 7, to postpone the MMHOP zoning proposal, AO 2026-85, to November 4, Alaska Public Media reported. Sponsor Erin Baldwin Day asked for a work session first, and no date has been set. The Assembly now has 13 amendments to weigh, a narrower alternative from member Janice Park, and an administration amendment delaying parts of the plan until 2028.

Alaska Impact: As written, MMHOP would allow eightplexes and townhouses across much of Anchorage north of Tudor Road and along Lake Otis, Jewel Lake and Dimond, and raise heights in the most restrictive zones from 30 to 40 feet. One amendment would cap that at 35. If it passes in any form, expect more small multifamily construction files with few local comps. The Legislative Affairs Committee is tracking AO 2026-85.

GAO Finds Few Buyers Used Trigger-Lead Offers Before New Limits

The Government Accountability Office reported October 6 (GAO-27-108874) that at most 3.5% of homebuyers from 2022 to 2024 got a loan through an offer based on a trigger lead. The Homebuyers Privacy Protection Act, in effect since March 2026, limits trigger leads to the borrower's current lender or servicer, a bank or credit union where they hold an account, or a party the borrower authorized. GAO said it is too early to measure the law's effect.

Alaska Impact: GAO found some lenders now pay the bureaus to flag when an existing customer applies elsewhere, which the law allows. In a state where many households keep one credit union or bank for decades, expect those retention offers to be the competing texts your borrowers still get. Tell borrowers at application who can legitimately contact them now, so a stray offer does not derail a December closing.

30-Year Climbs to 7.40% as Applications Fall Third Straight Week

According to Freddie Mac's October 8 survey, the 30-year fixed averaged 7.40%, up from 7.28% a week earlier and 6.30% a year ago, its seventh straight weekly rise. MBA's October 7 survey showed applications down 4.2% and refinances at their lowest since 2025, with the contract rate at 7.49%. MBA's Joel Kan cited higher Treasury yields and wider spreads as volatility rose; Realtor.com's Joel Berner pointed to a bond selloff, inflation expectations and new debt issuance.

Alaska Impact: On a $400,000 Anchorage purchase with 5% down, principal and interest at 7.40% runs about $2,631 a month, roughly $279 more than at 6.30%. Re-run debt-to-income on any floating file priced in September. MBA put the ARM share at 10.3%, so expect more borrowers to ask about one.

Twelve Trade Groups Ask Agencies to Copy GSE Value Reconsideration Process

The American Bankers Association and 11 other financial and real estate groups sent a joint letter October 7 to FHFA, HUD, USDA and VA, ABA Banking Journal reported. The 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act, passed earlier this year, requires a review process for consumer-initiated reconsiderations of value. The groups asked the agencies to model it on Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac's existing standards so lenders run one process across loan types. The agencies set the final requirements.

Alaska Impact: In Fairbanks, Kodiak or the Mat-Su, where comps can be thin and a single sale can move a value, borrowers question appraisals more often than in larger markets. One process would mean one ROV form and one QC checklist across conventional, FHA, VA and USDA instead of four. Until the agencies publish rules, keep following each program's current procedure.

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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.

Email [email protected] or call (907) 206-7363 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:

Senior Production Processor - Global Home Loans

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

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

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