Last week, 212 originators switched companies and 1,021 individuals obtained their NMLS license. Notable originator movements last week include:
Figures are based on last 14 months’ production.
Top Gainers (non-Bank/CU):
Calculations based on last aggregate production of individual LO’s 14 months’ production for companies with at least 20 loan officers. Excludes companies below $100M in 14mo LO production value after gains factored in.
Borrower retention has become one of the most discussed topics in mortgage over the past two years.
Servicing valuations have risen. Large lenders continue investing in borrower engagement platforms. And companies across the industry are looking for ways to capture more repeat business from borrowers they've already earned.
With full-year 2025 data now available, RETR updated its borrower retention analysis to see whether the industry is making progress.
The answer depends on which type of lender you're looking at.
The Industry Moved Backward
Across all company types, average borrower retention declined from 40.6% in 2024 to 38.6% in 2025.
That may not sound like a dramatic change, but across millions of borrowers it represents a significant increase in customer migration.
The typical lender is now losing more than six out of every ten borrowers when the next mortgage opportunity arises.
Just as notable, the spread between top and bottom performers remains enormous. Some lenders retain fewer than 10% of their borrowers, while others retain more than 80%.
The market conditions were largely the same.
The outcomes were not.
Banks Continue to Separate Themselves
Banks and credit unions remained the strongest retention performers in 2025.
Average borrower retention declined only slightly from 49.4% in 2024 to 48.5% in 2025.
In practical terms, the typical bank still retains roughly half of its borrowers.
More importantly, bank performance remains remarkably consistent. The majority of institutions cluster within a relatively narrow range, suggesting retention is being driven by systems and infrastructure rather than a handful of exceptional performers.
While the rest of the industry struggled to maintain borrower relationships, banks largely held their ground.
IMBs Lost More Ground
Independent Mortgage Banks experienced a more meaningful decline.
Average retention fell from 29.6% in 2024 to 26.9% in 2025.
That means the typical IMB is now losing nearly three out of every four borrowers.
The challenge isn't originating loans. Many IMBs remain among the industry's strongest acquisition engines.
The challenge is maintaining visibility and engagement after the transaction closes.
As a result, the gap between banks and IMBs widened further in 2025.
Brokers Saw Similar Trends
Mortgage brokers also moved backward.
Average retention declined from 30.6% in 2024 to 28.4% in 2025.
Like IMBs, brokers continue to face the challenge of maintaining long-term borrower relationships without the servicing portfolios and customer touchpoints available to many banks.
While there are standout performers in the broker channel, the overall segment continues to trail banks by a significant margin.
The Gap Is Growing
The most important takeaway from the 2025 data is not who ranked first.
It's that the industry's retention divide grew wider.
Banks outperformed IMBs by roughly 20 percentage points in 2024.
That gap expanded to more than 21 percentage points in 2025.
The same pattern emerged between banks and brokers.
In other words, the strongest retention segment remained largely stable while the weakest segments moved further backward.
The Bigger Question for 2026
Borrower retention is no longer just a marketing discussion.
It's becoming a competitive advantage.
Every borrower retained represents future refinance opportunities, home equity opportunities, and repeat purchase business.
Every borrower lost represents future acquisition costs.
As the industry prepares for the next mortgage cycle, the question may not be how many new borrowers a company can acquire.
It may be how many existing borrowers it can keep.
Based on the 2025 data, the lenders that have built retention into their operating model are beginning to pull away from those that haven't.
When it comes to mortgage market intelligence, you have a handful of options, and RETR is one that truly stands out. Here’s what Andy Beigel, top producer at NFM Lending has to say about RETR: “The simplicity of RETR’s interface has made it so easy to gather the necessary data required to move my business forward. It has allowed me to create additional exclusivity with my top referral partners and it allows me to identify top talent for recruiting and development.”
But you don’t have to take their word for it. RETR offers a free trial to loan officers, branches, and mortgage companies to judge the quality of the data and insights for themselves.