Banking and Finance Law Daily Wrap Up, MORTGAGES—Trump signs Executive Order to expand mortgage-related relief programs, (Oct 26, 2026)

By Suzanne Cosgrove

The White House said the order includes a directive to FHFA to make its title-insurance-waiver pilot permanent and to Agriculture and Veterans Affairs to reduce single-family home-loan rates.

President Donald Trump has signed an executive order directing the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) to create a mortgage-insurance cancellation pilot and turn its title-insurance-waiver pilot into a permanent program, stating that "unnecessary regulations and outdated mortgage processes have made homeownership unaffordable and increased closing costs.”.

Under the mortgage-insurance pilot, premiums would be canceled proactively once borrowers satisfy equity requirements based on current market value. The permanent waiver program is intended to let more borrowers use alternatives to title insurance and reduce refinancing closing costs and monthly homeownership expenses.

Fact sheet. The White House explained the directives in a fact sheet dated October 22, 2026. It described the order as a package intended to lower single-family homeownership and mortgage costs and promote innovation throughout the housing market. For the mortgage market, the fact sheet identifies two FHFA actions: creation of the mortgage-insurance cancellation pilot and the conversion of the title-insurance-waiver pilot into a permanent program.

Mortgage insurance. The mortgage-insurance pilot would tie cancellation to a borrower satisfying equity requirements based on current market value. Once that condition is met, FHFA would cancel the borrower’s premiums proactively, according to the fact sheet. The White House said the pilot would eliminate a large monthly expense for qualifying borrowers across the country.

The title-insurance directive calls for the FHFA Director to expand the agency’s waiver pilot into a permanent program. The White House said permanent status would allow more borrowers to use alternatives to title insurance. It linked the program to two stated cost goals: reducing closing costs for refinancing and lowering monthly expenses associated with homeownership.

VA loans. Separately, the order directs the Secretaries of Agriculture and Veterans Affairs to reduce interest rates on single-family home loans made by their respective departments. That action concerns department-made single-family loans, while the FHFA provisions address mortgage-insurance premiums and title-insurance waivers.

Manufactured homes. The order also establishes the Task Force on Manufactured Housing Innovation, co-chaired by the secretary of Housing and Urban Development and the FHFA director. The White House said the task force is intended to facilitate modern manufacturing methods in the production of factory-built housing eligible for federal housing programs. The Task Force’s stated goals are to improve the quality of that housing and lower the cost of building a home.

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