The ROAD to Housing Act is now law

🌅 Monday. A new week dawns! Today’s newsletter is 720 words, a 3-minute read.

1. The ROAD to Housing Act is now law

Trump refused to sign the bill, posting that he was doing so "in PROTEST" over the Senate's failure to pass the SAVE America Act voter ID bill. He also canceled a planned signing ceremony and called the legislation a "big yawn."

• The law streamlines environmental reviews, speeds up construction permitting, eliminates the permanent chassis requirement for manufactured housing, gives HUD authority over modular housing, restricts large institutional investors from buying additional single-family rentals, and creates a HUD mortgage program for loans under $100,000.

With no veto and no signature, the 10-day window expired and it became law automatically — passing the Senate 85-5 and the House 358-32.

2. Catalyst Mortgage hit with TCPA class action over unsolicited texts

A California man has filed a class action lawsuit against Catalyst Mortgage, alleging the lender sent him unsolicited text messages pitching mortgage products despite his phone number being on the National Do-Not-Call Registry since 2021.

The texts reportedly said Catalyst was reaching out because credit bureaus flagged a recent mortgage credit inquiry — but the plaintiff says he has no relationship with the company and never gave consent to be contacted.

The suit seeks damages of up to $1,500 per violation if the court finds the conduct was willful. It's the latest in a string of TCPA cases hitting mortgage lenders — attorneys earlier this year noted TCPA complaints in the mortgage space were up nearly 30% through May.

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3. More Nuggets

📊 MBA analysis finds minimal pricing impact from single credit score approach. (HousingWire)

🏦 Fed names task force members as it examines monetary policy decision-making. (CNBC)

💼 Plaintiffs oppose Veterans United motion to dismiss amended RESPA class-action suit. (The Reality Brief)

💰 MISMO says eNotes can save lenders up to $300 per loan. (NMP)

4. Homeowners sue First American over its DataTree property database

Four homeowners have filed a class action against First American Financial in California federal court, accusing the title insurer of profiting from their personal and property data through its DataTree platform without their consent.

DataTree offers access to homeowner information including mortgage data, lien and tax records, foreclosure status, phone numbers, and email addresses through both free and paid subscriptions.

The plaintiffs say First American is using their identities in a "commercial sales funnel" — not simply republishing public records — and is violating right of publicity laws in Alabama, California, Illinois, and Nevada.

5. Economists betting on a rate hike are growing — and that's a problem for mortgage

The share of economists who think the Fed's next move will be a rate increase jumped to 34% in the latest Wolters Kluwer Blue Chip survey, up from about 25% last month and just 9% two months ago.

Most economists — 66% — still expect a cut to come first, but not until mid-2027 and only a single 25 basis point reduction. Consensus expectations for where the Fed funds rate ends 2026 and 2027 both moved higher from last month.

For mortgage, the math is straightforward. The 10-year Treasury closed at 4.57% Thursday — a level that's kept the 30-year fixed well above 6% since the Iran conflict began in late February. As long as inflation stays elevated and rate hike odds keep rising, there's little pressure pushing mortgage rates lower.

☀️ You’re all caught up. See you on Wednesday!

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