Breaking Down the New "Promoting Access to Mortgage Credit" Executive Order
The landscape of American real estate finance has just shifted. On March 13, 2026, the President Trump issued a sweeping Executive Order (EO) titled "Promoting Access to Mortgage Credit" ( Promoting Access to Mortgage Credit – The White House ) . This directive signals a massive pivot away from the post-2008 regulatory framework, specifically targeting the "compliance costs" and "market distortions" due to the Dodd-Frank Act.
At The Commonwealth Group, we believe that this shift is a welcome change from the last 18 years of heavy-handed regulation and the crushing of mortgage credit availability (See blog post of January 27, 2026 - The Stifling Grip of Dodd-Frank: How Regulations Are Hindering Innovation in Mortgage Affordability - The Commonwealth Group ) .
This post is to provide our customers with a clear-eyed look at how policy impacts the bottom line. While more detailed posts will follow in the coming days as we explore the impacts of this order, here are our “hot takes” on what the order means for lenders, community banks, builders, and the average homebuyer.
The "Why" Behind the Change
The administration’s premise is straightforward: the heavy regulatory hand of the last two decades has scared lenders and banks—especially community banks—away from mortgage and construction lending.
By focusing on institutions with fewer than $30 billion in assets (“community banks”) and those under $100 billion ("smaller banks"), the EO aims to:
Reduce Compliance Friction: Lowering the cost of originating and servicing loans. Specifically related to HMDA reporting and the expansion of Ability to Repay (“ATR”) and Qualified Mortgages (“QM”)
Directive to the CFPB to review compliance related changes regarding TRID a/k/a “Know Before You Owe” a/k/a “The Reason I Drink.”
Directive to the CFPB to consider and eliminate the requirement for recission periods on refinance (including cash-outs) transactions.
Exempting “small” mortgage loans (most likely below $100,000; amount TBD) from caps on QM points and fees to support availability and affordability
Reinvigorate Rural and Low-Income Lending: These sectors were hardest hit by the "one-size-fits-all" rules that concentrated risk outside the traditional banking system.
Align Capital and Liquidity requirements to easier provide construction financing, warehouse lending, and real estate related portfolio lending.
Foster Innovation: Modernizing standards to include AI-driven appraisals and digital closings.
Key Pillars of the Reform
1. Common-Sense Underwriting
The EO directs the CFPB to move away from "technical compliance" and back toward "ability-to-repay" (ATR). Specifically, the order pushes for a "correction-first" supervisory treatment. This means that if a bank makes a good-faith technical error, they get a chance to fix it rather than facing immediate, crushing enforcement.
2. Appraisal and Digital Modernization
We are finally seeing a push to bring the mortgage process into the 21st century. The order encourages:
Alternative Valuation Models: Using AI and "hybrid" appraisals to speed up the process.
The End of "Wet-Signatures": A directive to eliminate unnecessary physical paperwork in favor of remote online notarization and e-notes.
Standardized Standards: Aligning FHA and VA appraisal standards to reduce redundancy for veterans and low-to-moderate income buyers.
3. Boosting Housing Supply
Crucially, Section 5 of the EO addresses the supply side. It instructs regulators to exclude residential construction lending from certain "commercial real estate concentration" guidance. This is a technical but vital change that should allow community banks to lend more freely to small residential builders.
The Commonwealth Commentary
While some may worry that "tailoring" rules for lenders and smaller banks could invite risk, this EO is a calculated bet on the local lender. Local mortgage lenders and community banks often have a better "on-the-ground" understanding of their borrowers than a distant algorithm.
By raising asset thresholds for data reporting (HMDA) and simplifying the "Qualified Mortgage" (QM) rules for portfolio loans, the administration is trying increase affordability and to lower the cost of origination which is a major barrier to entry for homeownership for the very institutions that serve middle America.
What’s Next?
The order gives the Director of the FHFA 120 days to submit a report on the efficiency of national housing finance markets. We expect this report to be the roadmap for even deeper legislative changes.
At The Commonwealth Group, we will be watching these regulatory "ripples" closely. If you are an independent mortgage banker, lender, community bank, or credit union looking to navigate these new waters, our team is ready to help lenders stay ahead of the curve. Commonwealth has the expertise needed to guide companies to achieve innovative and cost-saving solutions for their customers.
To get started and see what Commonwealth can do for your company, contact Martin Luplow at [email protected] for more information. The Commonwealth Group offers a variety of training, fulfillment, and consulting services for bank, credit unions, mortgage lenders, and mortgage brokers.
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Chief Executive Officer
The Commonwealth Group Companies