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HELOC and AI tools spotlight as MI, lawsuit, and mortgage rate trends shift
Curinos data show July 2026 mortgage funding volume was flat year over year, down 7.0% month over month, while the average 30-year conforming retail funded rate rose 8 bps from June to 6.42%
Mortgage industry discussion highlighted new technology and infrastructure around lending, including tools for HELOC and AI processing, as well as the creation of a private mortgage insurance company called Anza. Mortgage News Daily also pointed to legal and deal activity, noting that UWM filed a federal lawsuit tied to the Two Harbor and CrossCountry deal, with the reported deal size at $500 million. On market conditions, the outlet cited Curinos proprietary application index data: July 2026 funded mortgage volume was flat versus the prior year, but fell 7.0% month over month. It also said the average 30-year conforming retail funded rate in July 2026 was 6.42%, up 8 bps from June 2026 and down 33 bps versus the same month a year earlier.
Mortgage News Daily added that Optimal Blue’s Market Advantage mortgage data shows sensitivity to rate changes, with a 26-basis-point increase in the 30-year conforming rate pushing July purchase volume 12.0% below June’s pace. The outlet said a new 12-month forecast powered by Virtual Economist is intended to project where rates and spreads could be headed, alongside new capital markets metrics covering pipeline composition, hedge alignment, and servicing strategy.