Late Friday afternoon, the Trump Administration issued two executive orders focused on housing policy (1st and 2nd). One aimed at expanding access to mortgage credit and another directed at reducing regulatory barriers to home construction. Together, the orders signal a broader federal push to address housing affordability by lowering regulatory costs and encouraging both lending and homebuilding.
While these orders outline important policy goals, it is important to note that they are not self-executing. The directives call on federal agencies including the CFPB, Federal Reserve, FDIC, OCC, FHFA, NCUA, HUD, and others, to review existing regulations and consider potential changes. Any meaningful revisions will require formal rulemaking, supervisory guidance, or additional agency action, which will provide opportunities for industry engagement and comment.
Key Elements of the Mortgage Credit Executive Order
The mortgage-related order directs regulators to evaluate rules that may be limiting responsible lending or increasing the cost of mortgage origination. Areas highlighted for review include:
- Targeted regulatory relief for community banks and smaller lenders, including potential adjustments to capital standards and supervisory expectations
- Review of mortgage disclosure frameworks, including the TRID processes.
- Appraisal modernization, encouraging broader use of automated valuation models (AVMs), desktop, hybrid appraisals, and AI.
- Liquidity considerations, including the role of the FHLB system and secondary market access
The order also directs regulators to examine whether supervisory practices and regulatory complexity may be discouraging participation in mortgage lending.
Housing Construction Executive Order
A second executive order focuses on increasing housing supply by directing federal agencies to review regulations that may constrain residential development. Agencies including HUD, FHFA, the Department of Commerce, and the Department of Transportation have been tasked with identifying federal policies that may increase construction costs or delay development, particularly for affordable single-family homes and entry-level housing.
The order also encourages agencies to develop best practices for state and local governments, such as streamlined permitting timelines, clearer development rules, and policies that support housing supply.
Implications for the Mortgage Industry
The executive orders reflect a deregulatory policy direction, particularly aimed at lowering compliance costs and encouraging broader participation in mortgage lending.
However, much of the explicit relief referenced in the mortgage credit order appears to focus on community banks and smaller depository institutions. Independent mortgage banks (IMBs), and larger lenders, who collectively originate the majority of mortgages in the United States, are not clearly included in several of the targeted relief provisions.
This distinction is important. IMBs play a critical role in serving first-time homebuyers, low- and moderate-income (LMI) households, rural communities, and veterans. Any regulatory modernization effort aimed at expanding access to credit should ultimately ensure that relief is lender-agnostic and applied across the mortgage ecosystem.
TMC’s Perspective
TMC welcomes these executive orders as an encouraging signal, and we are genuinely optimistic that this moment marks the beginning of meaningful, long-overdue reform for the mortgage industry.
The conversation has started, and that matters. After years of navigating a complex and often burdensome regulatory environment, seeing federal attention turn toward modernization, expanded access to credit, and housing affordability is a positive development for our members and for the borrowers they serve every day.
We support efforts to modernize outdated or unnecessarily complex mortgage regulations and to address the structural housing supply challenges contributing to affordability pressures. And we believe the industry is well-positioned to engage constructively as agencies begin their reviews.
As federal agencies begin reviewing regulations and considering implementation of these executive orders, TMC will advocate for:
- Lender-agnostic regulatory relief
- Uniform supervisory expectations across lender types
- Modernized compliance frameworks that reduce costs without weakening consumer protections
- Recognition of the critical role IMBs play in expanding access to credit
At the same time, we believe that meaningful reform must recognize the full diversity of the mortgage market. Policies designed to expand access to homeownership should apply to all lenders who serve American families — not just depositories.
Our network is composed primarily of small and midsize lenders, with more than half being IMBs. These lenders sit across the table from first-time buyers, teachers, firefighters, and working families every day, and they originate a significant share of loans to LMI borrowers. Their role in this story is not a footnote; it is central to whether these policy goals are achieved.
We are engaged, we are at the table, and we are not standing still. TMC’s Advocacy Committee, chaired by Amy Azorandia, will continue monitoring developments, engaging directly with policymakers and industry stakeholders, and ensuring the voices of our members are heard as this process unfolds.
Jodi Hall | President & CEO