CONNECT by California MBA

Every lender is being pitched AI right now. But how many are actually implementing it successfully — and what separates the ones that do from the ones that don't?

In this episode of Connect, California MBA CEO Paul Gigliotti sits down with Varant Herculian of JazzX AI for a candid, execution-focused conversation on what it actually takes to move from an exciting AI demonstration to real-world adoption inside a mortgage operation.

Varant brings nearly three decades of mortgage industry experience — from originating loans to leading digital strategy and operational transformation — and now he's helping lenders reimagine their entire operating model with AI. This is not a product pitch. It's a masterclass in change management.

In this episode:

- Why the Frankenstein ecosystem of stacked point solutions is the core problem AI needs to solve — and what an intelligence layer actually means in practice

- The difference between a point solution and a true end-to-end AI platform: connected decisions, shared context, and no rip-and-replace of existing systems

- Why real adoption starts with business outcomes, not technology — and why the North Star metrics matter more than the implementation plan

- The agile production launch philosophy: why five loans in a real production environment teaches you more than five months in a conference room

- How to build a champion network, capture testimonials, and cascade adoption at scale

- The two workflow scenarios every lender falls into — and how JazzX solves for both

- Tunable autonomy: how lenders can start in recommendation-only mode and gradually increase AI autonomy as trust and evidence grow

- How to establish baseline metrics from day one so ROI can be proven — not assumed

- Why lenders are more open to upfront implementation costs than you'd think — if you can prove the value first

Connect is the California MBA's podcast where strategy, innovation, and leadership come together to shape the future of mortgage finance.

Subscribe for new episodes featuring the voices driving the industry forward.

Credit scoring is one of the most consequential — and least understood — topics in mortgage right now. And it's moving fast.

In this episode of Connect, California MBA CEO Paul Gigliotti sits down with Devin Norales, Head of Mortgage and Capital Markets at FICO, for a deep-dive conversation on credit score modernization, FICO 10T, and what it means for lenders, originators, capital markets professionals, and the borrowers they serve.

FICO is used by 90% of top US lenders and remains the standard for consumer credit risk. And now — with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac releasing more than a decade of loan-level FICO 10T data — the industry is finally positioned to take the next step toward adopting the most predictive credit scoring model ever built.

In this episode:

- What FICO 10T actually is — and what the "T" stands for (trended data)

- Why 10T is a video, not a photo — and what that means for how lenders see borrower credit behavior

- How 24 months of trended history changes the picture for borrowers who manage credit well but look risky at a single point in time

- The rental data question: only 3.5 million of 77 million renters have data furnished to credit bureaus — and what FICO is doing about it

- Improved treatment of authorized users, medical collections under $500, and what's new vs. classic FICO

- FICO 10T for Free: the program already running with 70+ lenders that lets them receive 10T alongside their classic score at no extra cost

- Why the VA space and non-QM are the first places lenders can start using 10T right now

- How 10T can sharpen MSR pricing grids and improve secondary market execution

- Why both scoring models should be implemented at the same time — and what chaos looks like if they aren't

- What policymakers need to understand about credit modernization before layering on new regulation

Connect is the California MBA's podcast where strategy, innovation, and leadership come together to shape the future of mortgage industry.

Subscribe for new episodes featuring the voices driving the mortgage industry forward.

Lenders are spending more on technology than ever — and getting less return than they expected. Why? Because most of them don't know what they have, what it costs to run it, or whether it's actually delivering.

In this episode of Connect, California MBA CEO Paul Gigliotti sits down with Vince Furey, who leads the mortgage vertical at MeridianLink, for a wide-ranging conversation on technology strategy, borrower experience, data, and what lenders need to focus on right now to be ready for the next cycle.

Vince brings 30+ years of industry experience — from originating loans in 1992 to leading the mortgage platform at OpenClose before its acquisition by MeridianLink — and he doesn't hold back on what lenders are getting wrong or what the best operators are doing differently.

In this episode:

- Why the age of the first-time homebuyer has gone from 30 to 40 in just 10 years — and what that means for lenders

- Why lenders' cost per loan has gone up 3-4X despite all the technology they've added — and what to do about it

- The "purpose built for lender innovation" philosophy: why MeridianLink gives lenders full administrative control over their own workflows

- How one MeridianLink client doubled their volume without doubling their staff

- The Gen Z and late millennial borrower: why they want a fully digital experience that can pivot to human instantly — and what happens when lenders can't deliver that

- Why data aggregation is king right now — and how MeridianLink's Insight BI platform lets lenders benchmark themselves against peers

- How lenders can use their own data to identify and cure potential fair lending issues before regulators surface them with AI

- Why MeridianLink Intelligence is built natively on the data layer — giving it a full 360-degree view of every loan

Connect is the California MBA's podcast where strategy, innovation, and leadership come together to shape the future of mortgage finance.

Subscribe for new episodes featuring the voices driving the industry forward.

Lenders cut to the bone. Volume stalled. And now the next cycle is coming — are you operationally ready for it?

In this episode of Connect, California MBA CEO Paul Gigliotti sits down with Mike Brown of Gateless, a company helping lenders rethink how work gets done across the entire mortgage loan lifecycle. Mike brings deep operational expertise — from Black Knight's loan origination group to leading Gateless — and he's here to talk about what lenders need to do right now, not when volume comes back.

From a 2-3X increase in capacity to a nearly 50% reduction in turn times, the results Gateless clients are seeing are hard to ignore. And the strategy behind them is more practical than you might think.

In this episode:

- Why the industry is split between lenders who are preparing for the next cycle and those still in wait-and-see mode

- The "lights out" integration model — how Gateless works entirely behind the scenes inside the LOS with zero end-user friction

- Why Gateless focuses exclusively on credit, income, and assets — and why being an inch wide and a mile deep beats trying to do everything

- How moving verification work to the front of the process creates cleaner files, faster closings, and a better borrower experience

- The stat that changes the conversation: 1 in 4 loans gets a full credit, income, and asset certification in 5 minutes or less

- Why 24/7 availability is a competitive advantage loan officers and borrowers are actually counting on

- How one Gateless client reported a 12-day savings compared to their other channel — and another cut resubmission rates by 50%

- Why technology on top of a bad process makes things worse — and what to fix before you implement

- What the best operators are doing right now to be ready when the market moves

Connect is the California MBA's podcast where strategy, innovation, and leadership come together to shape the future of mortgage finance.

Subscribe for new episodes featuring the voices driving the industry forward.

The regulatory and compliance landscape for mortgage lenders has never been more complex — and the risks hiding in the rearview mirror may be bigger than the ones ahead.

In this episode of Connect, California MBA CEO Paul Gigliotti sits down with James W. Brody, Esq., Founder and Managing Partner of Brody Gapp LLP, for a wide-ranging conversation on the current legal risk environment, where litigation is spiking, and what lenders need to do right now to protect themselves.

James brings decades of experience in mortgage banking litigation, enforcement defense, regulatory risk, and the rapidly evolving legal landscape around AI — and he doesn't hold back on any of it.

In this episode:

- Why the CFPB stepping back has created a dangerous patchwork of state-level AI and compliance regulations — and why national lenders are being forced to build to the strongest law

- The biggest litigation category right now: LO poaching and non-solicit cases in a consolidating market

- Why Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are scrubbing their 2020–2023 portfolios using AI fraud tools — and what that means for repurchase exposure

- How lenders can take an active role in renegotiating MLPAs to add materiality qualifiers and limit buyback liability

- Why compliance woven into the fabric of a company from the ground up creates less exposure and more opportunity

- How to inventory the AI already inside your organization — because it's likely already there through vendor updates

- Why agentic AI doing licensable activity is the next major legal debate — and who will be held responsible

- Why advocacy is not separate from your business — and why now is the moment to leverage political capital before it's too late

Connect is the California MBA's podcast where strategy, innovation, and leadership come together to shape the future of mortgage finance.

Subscribe for new episodes featuring the voices driving the industry forward.

Nobody originates a loan hoping it becomes a legal strategy session — but in the real world, defaults happen, projects stall, and lenders need a plan.

In this episode of Connect, California MBA CEO Paul Gigliotti sits down with Steven Ernest of Forta Law for a practical, no-nonsense conversation on managing defaults, protecting collateral, and maximizing recovery as a private lender in California.

Steven brings deep experience in litigation, enforcement, and creditor rights — and breaks down exactly what lenders should be watching for, documenting, and doing the moment a loan starts to go wrong.

In this episode:

- The two early warning signs every lender should watch: missed insurance and unpaid property taxes

- What a Notice of Default really means for junior lienholders — and why "hope is not a strategy"

- The three documents every file needs before a loan goes to collections: the note, the deed of trust, and a locked-in payoff balance

- The two most common lawsuits lenders face: elder abuse and "I didn't understand what I signed" — and how to protect against both

California licensing and usury rules: why a 12% loan can become a 0% loan overnight without the right license

- Why California has more usury exceptions than most states — and why that actually favors lenders

- The insurance risk every California lender should be thinking about over the next 12-24 months — wildfires, earthquakes, and whether the industry can absorb a major loss event

Connect is the California MBA's podcast where strategy, innovation, and leadership come together to shape the future of mortgage finance.

Subscribe for new episodes featuring the voices driving the industry forward.

Mortgage lenders track rates, volume, and affordability. But are they paying close enough attention to what's happening in real estate — and how it directly affects their business?

In this episode of Connect, California MBA CEO Paul Gigliotti sits down with Coby Hakalir, SVP/Managing Director of Mortgage & Core Services at T3 Sixty, a firm helping real estate leaders think through strategy, brokerage performance, technology, and the future of how real estate companies operate. The conversation covers consolidation, the fight for the consumer, the evolving LO-agent relationship, and what AI is starting to do to the home search experience.

This is the intersection of mortgage and real estate — and it's a conversation the industry needs to have.

In this episode:

• Why real estate brokerage EBITDA is hovering near zero — and the parallels to mortgage

• The consolidation wave: Compass at 30% market share, Rocket-Redfin, and what it means for JV partnerships

• Why 80% of borrowers and real estate clients never come back — and the stat behind it (88% don't even remember their loan officer's name 12 months after the transaction)

• What agents actually want from lender partners right now — and why coffee and open houses aren't enough anymore

• The dual technological journey borrowers go through — and why it's creating transaction trauma

• How propensity data and AI-powered home search are reshaping the consumer experience in real estate

• Answer engine optimization vs. search engine optimization — and why it matters for mortgage next

• Why shifts in the market always create opportunity — and how to approach change with eyes wide open

Connect is the California MBA's podcast where strategy, innovation, and leadership come together to shape the future of mortgage finance.

Subscribe for new episodes featuring the voices driving the mortgage industry forward.

One out of every four loans in 2026 will be non-agency. Are you positioned to compete for all of them — or just three out of four?

In this episode of Connect, California MBA CEO Paul Gigliotti sits down with Tom Davis, Chief Sales Officer at Deephaven Mortgage, for a data-heavy, no-fluff conversation on where the non-QM and non-agency markets are headed, why the equity opportunity is generational, and what loan officers need to do right now to stay relevant.

Tom brings a front-row view of what's actually happening across borrower demand, product innovation, and liquidity — and he doesn't sugarcoat what originators are leaving on the table by not having a full suite of non-agency products.

In this episode:

• Why non-QM is on pace to hit $150–180B in 2026 — an all-time record

The $400–500B total non-agency market and why missing it means only accessing 75% of your opportunity

• Who the non-QM borrower really is: self-employed, investor, credit event, foreign national — and why they're actually lower risk than you think

• Why 30% of all 2025 transactions were investor deals — and what a full investor product suite looks like

• The home equity opportunity: $35 trillion in equity, 80% of homeowners locked into sub-5% rates, and $600B in renovation originations projected for 2026

• HELOCs, closed-end seconds, and how Deephaven built a Jumbo HELOC up to $1M with alt-doc features

• Why waiting for rates to drop is a losing strategy — and what LOs should be doing instead

• How servicers are stealing your past clients at a 90% retention rate — and how equity products stop the bleed

Connect is the California MBA's podcast where strategy, innovation, and leadership come together to shape the future of mortgage finance.

Subscribe for new episodes featuring the voices driving the industry forward.

The mortgage production environment is as competitive as ever — tight margins, volume pressure, and a flood of technology promises. So what actually separates the lenders managing through it well from those that are struggling?

In this episode of Connect, California MBA CEO Paul Gigliotti sits down with Steve Kolker, Managing Director and Chief Production Officer at AmeriHome Mortgage, a Western Alliance Bank company. Steve brings 40 years of industry experience and a front-row seat to what's working across AmeriHome's 800+ correspondent lending clients — and he doesn't hold back.

Fresh off moderating a panel at the 2026 Mortgage Innovators Conference, Steve shares his two biggest aha moments from MIC and breaks down exactly how production teams should be thinking about AI, workflow redesign, and the advocacy issues that are quietly shaping the industry's future.

In this episode:

• Why builder and realtor relationships are outperforming in today's market — and what refi shops are doing right

• The "shift left" strategy: why moving decisions earlier in the process is the highest-leverage tool for reducing cost

• Why plugging new technology into an old linear workflow is a guaranteed failure

• AI's biggest opportunity in production: fraud detection, call center coaching, income calculation, and real-time underwriting decisioning

• How an AI listening tool could give a loan officer an near-underwriting decision before the first call ends

• The coming California legislation on automated underwriting — and why being at the table matters

• Why advocacy isn't separate from production — it IS production

Connect is the California MBA's podcast where strategy, innovation, and leadership come together to shape the future of mortgage finance.

To learn more about AmeriHome, visit www.correspondent.amerihome.com

Subscribe for new episodes featuring the voices driving the industry forward.

The mortgage industry has been talking about AI and automation for years — but where is it actually delivering results today?

In this episode of Connect, California MBA CEO Paul Gigliotti sits down with Neil Armstrong, newly appointed Chief Revenue Officer of Indecomm, to dig into the real-world mechanics of operational automation in mortgage lending. Neil brings a rare perspective — 20+ years in the industry, including time on the lender side at PHH and Citi Mortgage — and he's not here to sell buzzwords. He's here to talk process, ROI, and what it actually takes to build a scalable lending operation.

From machine learning-based document classification to automated underwriting, from breaking down operational silos to the critical role of change management, Neil lays out exactly what's working, where lenders get stuck, and what the next wave of agentic AI looks like inside the mortgage lifecycle.

In this episode:

• Why cost-per-function analysis is replacing headcount as the efficiency benchmark

• How Indecomm's IDX system is cutting title review from 38 minutes to 3 and appraisal review from 40 minutes to 6

• The 60% lift in underwriter productivity — and how automated underwriting is getting there

• Why you can't automate a bad process (and what to fix first)

• Change management as the #1 deployment killer — and how to get buy-in from the top down

• The difference between deterministic rules, machine learning, and true generative AI (and why it matters)

• What's coming next: agentic AI as a digital assistant for auditors and underwriters

• The human-technology balance — why borrower-facing automation isn't the goal

Connect is the California MBA's podcast where strategy, innovation, and leadership come together to shape the future of mortgage finance.

Subscribe for new episodes featuring the voices driving the industry forward.