Dustin McIntosh, MLO at Canopy Mortgage

Dustin McIntosh, MLO at Canopy Mortgage Mortgage originator & real estate agent with 10+ years’ experience. Specializing in manufactured home lending. Licensed in OK & OH. Educator, husband, father.

09/02/2026

If you have been watching mortgage rates over the last couple of weeks you are probably wondering why they started climbing again after finally coming down. Here is what is driving it and what it means for you.

The biggest reason is uncertainty in the global economy. Rising tensions in the Middle East have pushed oil prices higher. When oil prices rise it creates inflationary pressure across the broader economy. And when inflation becomes a concern investors demand higher returns on bonds which pushes mortgage rates up with them.

It is the same chain reaction we have talked about before. Geopolitics driving oil. Oil driving inflation concerns. Inflation concerns driving rates.

So if you got a payment estimate earlier this month there is a good chance that number has already changed. Not dramatically in most cases but enough that it is worth getting an updated picture before you make any decisions based on older information.

Here is the important thing to remember though. Rates move every single day. Sometimes multiple times a day. One headline does not mean you have missed your window. One week of rising rates does not erase the opportunity. Markets are fluid and conditions can shift in either direction quickly.

If you are thinking about buying a home or refinancing the best move is always to get updated numbers rather than rely on what you heard or saw last week. A quick conversation can tell you exactly where things stand right now and what your actual payment would look like.

Reach out anytime and let's get you current numbers to work with.

08/27/2026

Most people are watching the Federal Reserve to figure out where mortgage rates are headed. But the bigger story this week is happening in the bond market and it is worth understanding.

Mortgage rates are heavily influenced by investor demand for long-term bonds. This week investors continued watching inflation, government spending, and economic uncertainty. When bond yields move higher mortgage rates can feel upward pressure. When the bond market improves rates have room to move lower. The Fed is just one piece of a much larger picture.

So what does this mean for your clients right now?

The biggest mistake buyers can make is waiting for the perfect moment. The market is constantly changing and the perfect moment rarely arrives on the schedule buyers are waiting for. The right strategy is understanding your options, knowing what your payment looks like at current rates, and making a decision based on your personal goals and your financial readiness rather than a rate prediction.

The agents who stand out in today's market are the ones who go beyond the headline. Clients are watching the news and getting confused. The agents who can explain what the bond market actually means for housing and what buyers should actually be doing right now are the ones who build real trust and real referrals.

If you have clients asking about the bond market and what it means for their home purchase I am always happy to help you have that conversation.

08/26/2026

I get this question all the time. Should I just wait for the housing market to crash?

Here is the honest answer. Most economists are not expecting a repeat of 2008. Today's market looks fundamentally different. Homeowners have strong equity. Foreclosure rates are low. There is still a genuine shortage of homes in many areas across the country. Could prices level off in some markets? Absolutely. That is already happening in certain areas and it is a normal part of any market cycle.

But waiting for a massive crash that may never come means paying higher prices later while missing out on building equity today.

The smartest move is not trying to perfectly time the market. It is buying when you are financially ready and finding the right strategy for your situation.

There is an old saying about trees. When is the best time to plant a tree? Ten years ago. When is the second best time? Today.

Same applies to houses. When was the best time to buy? Ten years ago. When is the second best time? Today.

The equity you would have been building for the last ten years while waiting for a crash that never came is gone. Do not let the next ten years look the same.

Hit the like and follow button for more content like this.

08/19/2026

Can you really trust AI to shop your mortgage and guide your home purchase? The newest data has some surprising answers worth paying attention to.

A brand-new survey found that 76 percent of buyers are now comfortable letting AI shop lenders for them and 89 percent would happily share their financial details to get personalized mortgage advice. Those numbers show just how powerful these tools have become and how quickly buyer attitudes toward AI in the mortgage process have shifted.

And honestly AI does some things really well. Comparing loan options across multiple lenders quickly, organizing paperwork, running payment scenarios fast, surfacing programs a buyer might not have known to ask about. For the heavy lifting of information gathering and number crunching these tools are genuinely useful.

But here is where it gets important. The buyers who win are the ones who let AI handle that heavy lifting and then bring in a great loan officer to read between the lines, catch what a screen could miss, and fight for them when it actually counts. An algorithm cannot pick up the phone and advocate for your file when an underwriter has a question. It cannot notice that your situation qualifies for a program the standard comparison missed. It cannot bring judgment and experience to a situation that does not fit neatly into a dropdown menu.

Use both and you get the best of what is available: speed and efficiency from the technology plus a real human in your corner when the stakes are highest.

Reach out and let's talk about how to put both to work for you.

08/12/2026

Why have mortgage rates been climbing because of the conflict with Iran? Here is the simple chain reaction that most people never get a clear explanation of.

When the conflict began in late February it disrupted the flow of oil through a critical shipping route and prices jumped immediately. Higher oil prices make almost everything cost more to produce and ship. That fuels broader inflation across the economy. And when inflation heats up investors demand higher returns on bonds to protect themselves from that inflation eroding their purchasing power.

That pushes the ten-year Treasury yield higher and mortgage rates closely follow that yield. So up they went, peaking near 6.75 percent back in May. Every step in that chain connected directly back to what was happening in the Middle East.

Here is the encouraging part. A new peace deal framework just reopened the key oil shipping route. Oil prices have dropped in response. And mortgage rates have already started easing back down to their lowest level in a month.

This is how connected global events and your mortgage rate actually are. Your rate moves with the headlines in ways most people do not realize until they are in the middle of trying to buy or refinance.

The smart play right now is staying ready to act when rates dip rather than waiting for a perfect moment that may not hold. Reach out and let's make sure you are positioned to move when the opportunity is there.

08/05/2026

You have probably seen some headlines about a possible 50-year mortgage and wondered if it is finally here. Let me give you a straight answer so you can stop wondering.

Right now the answer is no. A 50-year mortgage has been discussed in various policy and industry conversations as a potential way to lower monthly payments and improve affordability for buyers who are being priced out by current rates and prices. But it is not an available mortgage product today. You cannot walk into a lender and choose a 50-year loan.

And while it is worth understanding the concept, it is also worth understanding the trade-off clearly. Yes, stretching a loan over 50 years instead of 30 would lower the monthly payment. But it would also mean paying significantly more interest over the life of the loan. A lot more. And it would mean building equity much more slowly because a larger portion of every early payment goes toward interest rather than principal. You would own less of your home for longer.

So while it makes for an interesting conversation and a compelling headline it is not something buyers can actually choose right now.

The more useful conversation is about the loan options that are actually available today and which one makes the most sense for your specific financial situation and goals. There are more options than most buyers realize and some of them are very compelling in the current market.

Reach out and let's have that conversation instead.

07/30/2026

Some of your buyers may qualify for a zero down loan today even if they did not qualify just a few weeks ago. And this is worth paying attention to right now.

USDA recently announced updated income limits for its Single Family Guaranteed Loan Program with the new limits taking effect on July 13, 2026. In many parts of the country this means more households may now qualify for USDA financing, which offers 100 percent financing with no down payment required for eligible buyers.

This is not a minor adjustment. If you have had buyers sitting on the sidelines because they were just over the income limit before July 13th it is absolutely worth taking another look at their situation right now.

Here is the important detail to keep in mind. USDA income limits are based on the property's county and household size so the exact qualifying thresholds vary depending on where your client is buying. A buyer who did not qualify in one county may qualify in a neighboring one. And a buyer who was just over the limit before the update may now be comfortably under it.

Zero down payment. No private mortgage insurance structured like conventional PMI. Competitive rates. USDA financing is one of the most powerful tools available for buyers purchasing in eligible areas and the updated income limits just expanded who can access it.

If you have a client you are not sure about reach out and I will run the numbers to see if they qualify. No pressure and no obligation.

07/06/2026

Your mortgage payment is fixed but your total monthly payment might not be and here is the explanation most homeowners never receive until they are already surprised by the increase.

When you have a fixed-rate mortgage what is actually fixed is your principal and interest. That component is stable and will not change. But if you have an escrow account your lender is also collecting money every month for property taxes and homeowners insurance and those two items are absolutely not fixed. When your county reassesses your home and raises your property taxes or your insurance company increases your annual premium your total monthly payment goes up even though your interest rate never changed by a single point.

And sometimes the increase feels even larger than you would expect because your escrow account was short from the prior year. Your servicer is not just adjusting for the new higher amounts going forward. They are simultaneously collecting extra to make up for the shortfall from the previous year. That combination can produce a jump in your payment that feels completely unexpected and that nobody warned you about when you closed.

The important distinction is this: your lender did not change your fixed rate. The cost of owning the home around the mortgage changed. Here is what you can do about it. Review your escrow analysis statement carefully every single year so you understand exactly what is changing and why before it catches you off guard. Shop your homeowners insurance on a regular basis because premiums vary meaningfully between carriers and switching can be simpler than most people realize. And look into whether you can appeal your property tax assessment because successful appeals happen more often than most homeowners know.

Follow me for more mortgage tips that homeowners usually learn the hard way.

07/01/2026

A price cut does not automatically mean the seller is desperate. But it does mean buyers have more room to negotiate than they did a year or two ago and knowing how to use that room correctly is what separates smart buyers from the ones who lose deals they could have won.

Here is the mistake I see buyers making consistently right now. They hear that a lot of sellers are reducing prices across the market and assume that every listing can be lowballed aggressively. That is simply not how it works. A home that was overpriced by $50,000 and just cut the price may still not be a deal at the new number. And a home that is priced correctly in a strong neighborhood may still attract multiple offers regardless of broader market conditions.

Before you throw out a low offer on any property look carefully at three specific things. How long has the home been sitting on the market compared to the local average? How does the current asking price compare to recent comparable sales in that specific area? And has the seller already reduced the price once or multiple times? If the home has been on the market for an extended period, has received no offers, and the seller has already made price cuts, that is the combination that signals genuine leverage and justifies more aggressive negotiation on both price and terms.

But here is the part most buyers completely miss. The best offer is not always the lowest number. Sometimes it is the cleanest terms. Strong financing documentation, a flexible closing timeline, and minimal contingency friction can win over a higher priced offer from a less prepared buyer because sellers weigh certainty alongside price.

Follow me for more smart home buying strategies that work in today's market.

06/30/2026

Something big just happened in Washington and as your loan officer I want to be the one to break it down for you before the headlines confuse the picture.

Congress just passed the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act with strong bipartisan support. This is the most significant housing legislation in nearly two decades and it matters directly to buyers, sellers, and homeowners throughout the country.

Here is what it means in plain terms. The legislation encourages more homes to get built which addresses the inventory shortage that has been one of the most persistent challenges in the housing market for years. It opens up more mortgage options for everyday buyers expanding access to financing beyond what currently exists. And it helps level the playing field so regular families get a fairer shot against large institutional investors who have been competing for the same properties.

The bill is at the President's desk now so the full timeline and implementation details are still unfolding. I am tracking every development closely and will keep you updated as this becomes clearer.

Here is what I want you to know right now. The smartest move you can make in a moment like this is having a loan officer who turns major headlines into a real and personalized plan for your specific situation. Generic information is everywhere. A strategy built around your goals, your timeline, and your financial picture is what actually makes a difference.

That is exactly what I am here for. Reach out and let's talk through what this legislation means for you specifically.

Address

Tyler, TX

Website

,

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Dustin McIntosh, MLO at Canopy Mortgage posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Business

Send a message to Dustin McIntosh, MLO at Canopy Mortgage:

Shortcuts

Share

Category