With the rapid advancement of artificial intelligence, companies are constantly rolling our new products.
This month, multiple companies in the mortgage industry leveraged AI to increase efficiency, integrated with other companies and consolidated processes to improve borrower experience.
The following is a roundup of some other recent news from those looking to help lenders and consumers in different ways.
Australia toughens kids’ social media ban, doubles potential penalties for tech firms
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Link to the main Prime Day page (links in this post contain our affiliate, we appreciate those who support the site)
Amazon announced Prime Day 2026 will run from 12:01 a.m. PDT on June 23rd through June 26th. We’ll fill out this page as more deals become available and we’ll likely sticky the post at some point during Prime Day.
Other gift card deals:
About 3 million fewer people in the United States had Affordable Care Act health insurance plans in February compared with the same time last year, according to new federal data.
In the report released Friday, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services suggested the 13% drop in enrollment from 22.1 million people in 2025 to 19.2 million this year could be attributed to a federal crackdown on fraudulent or “phantom” enrollment. But health analysts said it was more likely related to the Jan. 1 expiration of federal subsidies, which caused a surge in plan costs that resulted in many people being unable to pay their premiums.
“We know that real people lost their health insurance coverage,” said Cynthia Cox, a vice president and director of the ACA program at the healthcare research nonprofit KFF, citing survey findings on people who had left their plans. “This coverage loss happened at the same time millions of people faced double or even triple digit increases in their premium payments.”
The new data, compiled in April but showing coverage in February, represents the government’s first official look at how people’s inability to pay their first bills this year affected total enrollment. That is because the figures capture the marketplace after a nonpayment grace period expired.
A federal estimate in January showed that about 800,000 fewer people had signed up for ACA plans compared with the same time last year, marking the first time in the past four years that enrollment had been down from the previous year at that point in the shopping window.
Cox said KFF expects the total number of people in the government healthcare program to continue to decline throughout the year, potentially to a low of about 17.5 million. That would be a significant drop for the government’s flagship subsidized health insurance program for working-age people who do not qualify for Medicaid. In recent years, ACA plans have become a popular choice for gig workers, farmers, ranchers, hairstylists and others without health coverage through an employer.
The ACA subsidies that expired this year were at the center of a bitter fight in Congress last fall, with Democrats and some Republicans calling for their renewal. Sharp increases in health costs across ACA and other health insurance programs come as voters in the approaching November elections say affordability is among their top concerns.
Presented in partnership with Connect Invest.
I run a glamping and short-term rental portfolio in Texas, and I self-manage basically all of it. I take the direct bookings and answer the guest messages. I’m the one who hears about the hot tub at 11 p.m. on a Saturday.
I have a rule for where I even buy a property (60 minutes from a city of 500,000 people, 30 minutes from an attraction, and 10 minutes from anything resembling civilization), and I obsess over it because every detail is mine to get right.
The vast majority of my bookings come direct, not through a platform, because I built the systems to make that happen, and I refuse to hand a third of my revenue to anybody. That is the kind of operator I am: hands-on everything and allergic to giving up control.
So I am the last person you would expect to write a blog telling you to put money into something completely passive. But this is exactly why I am the right person to do it.
If someone mentions a passive real estate product to you, a real estate investor who actually does the work, a little voice in your head goes, “That is not really investing.”
Real investing has calluses, meaning you found the deal, ran the numbers, fixed the thing, dealt with the tenant, and sweated the refi. Passive feels like cheating—like the move people make when they do not have the stomach or skills to do it for real.
I get the instinct. For years, I treated “passive” like a soft word.
Here is what I eventually figured out: That instinct is a story I tell myself so I can feel superior, and those stories usually cost you money.
Look at what an active portfolio really is when you strip away the pride.
It is concentrated. My money, time, and attention all point to the same handful of assets in the same general region, exposed to the same weather, local economy, and booking trends. When my market has a soft season, it all softens at once.
It is operationally heavy. Every dollar I earn is tied to something getting done, and the “something” usually gets done by me.
The cleaner cancels. The well pump dies. A platform changes its algorithm, and my whole calendar feels it. The income is good, but it is never automatic. It is wages with extra steps.
And here is the uncomfortable one: The single biggest point of failure in my entire portfolio is me. If I burn out, get hurt, or just want to take two weeks off the grid without my phone buzzing, the machine slows down. I built a business that runs on my hands, and they get tired.
None of that means active investing is wrong. I love it, and I’m never going to stop doing it. But pretending it is diversified just because I own more than one property is a lie. Owning four glamping units in the same county is the same bet, four times.
So I started keeping a sleeve of my capital somewhere that does the opposite of everything I just described, because I did the math on my own risk and did not like how concentrated it was.
A passive sleeve is a counterweight to passive investing, not a replacement for it. While my active money is busy being illiquid, regional, and dependent on my labor, my passive money is sitting in something liquid-ish, real estate-backed, and dependent on nobody. When my operations have a heavy month, the passive piece pays me anyway.
That is the whole point: The two halves are supposed to behave differently. If your “diversification” all moves together, you just bought more of the same risk and gave it new names.
The product I use as my passive sleeve is Connect Invest, and it fits my brain for one specific reason: It requires zero operations.
You put money into real estate-backed Short Notes, which are pools of private real estate loans. You are on the lending side, collecting a fixed monthly income for it. That means no tenants, turnover, cleaners, or 11 p.m. hot tub texts.
The structure is refreshingly boring:
It’s not risk-free. Short Notes are investments, which can lose money. But the risk profile is different from mine and the entire job I hired it for. It is real estate income that shows up every month, while I direct my actual energy toward the assets I run with my own hands.
For an operator, that is the cleanest version of diversification there is. I get to stay in real estate, the thing I understand, without adding one more property to manage or another reason to never take a day off.
So here is the permission slip, from one hands-on operator to another: Keeping a passive sleeve makes you less fragile. The strongest operators I know are not the ones with all their chips on the table that they personally run. They are the ones who run that table beautifully and also keep money working somewhere that does not need them at all.
Start with the slice of your cash that isn’t earmarked for a deal and is just sitting there, feeling productive while earning nothing. Put that to work passively. Keep grinding on the active side exactly like you do now.
I still self-manage everything, taking direct bookings, answering messages, and driving out to the property when something breaks. What changed is that some of my money no longer depends on me to do anything, and that turned out to be the best move I have made in years.
Control is great. I built my whole business on it. But the smartest thing I ever did with control was admit there were a few dollars I was better off not having to control at all.
This article is sponsored content presented in partnership with Connect Invest. It is for educational and informational purposes only and is not investment, financial, tax, or legal advice. Short Notes are investments and carry risk, including the potential loss of principal. Returns are fixed by term but not guaranteed. Rates and terms referenced reflect Connect Invest’s published figures at the time of writing and are subject to change. Review all current offering details and disclosures before investing.
Learn more at connectinvest.com.
Sony Music Publishing has been named Publisher of the Year at the 2026 ASCAP Rhythm & Soul Music Awards.
The ceremony, which took place on Thursday (June 25) on the rooftop of The London West Hollywood at Beverly Hills, honored the writers and publishers of the year’s most-performed songs, based on Luminate radio and streaming data.
SMP songwriters were recognized across 27 of ASCAP’s top-performing R&B, hip-hop and gospel songs of the past year.
Mustard was named ASCAP Rhythm & Soul Songwriter of the Year for his work, including TV Off by Kendrick Lamar and Little Things by Ella Mai.
He also produced Kendrick Lamar‘s Grammy-winning Not Like Us and and joined him to perform TV Off during the Super Bowl LIX halftime show.
Leon Thomas received the ASCAP Vanguard Award, which recognizes members whose work is helping to shape the future of music.
Previous recipients of the award include Victoria Monét, Migos, Janelle Monáe and the Beastie Boys, according to ASCAP.
Thomas won two Grammys at the 2026 ceremony, including Best R&B Album for Mutt.
He also won an ASCAP Rhythm & Soul Award for his single Mutt.
luther by Kendrick Lamar and SZA was named ASCAP’s Top R&B/Hip-Hop and Rap Song of the Year.
The single’s ASCAP-credited writers include Marvin Gaye, Kamasi Washington, Scott Bridgeway and Jack Antonoff, with SMP among the publishers.
luther incorporates Gaye‘s composition If This World Were Mine.
ASCAP said luther spent 13 weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and set the record for the longest-running No. 1 in the history of Billboard‘s Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart.
ASCAP’s Rhythm & Soul Gospel Song of the Year went to Rest On Us by Maverick City and UPPEROOM.
“This achievement reflects the extraordinary impact of SMP‘s songwriters, whose work continues to inspire audiences around the world.”
Ari Gelaw, Sony Music Publishing
Upon receiving the award, Sony Music Publishing‘s VP, Creative A&R, Ari Gelaw, said: “We are incredibly honored to be recognized by ASCAP as Rhythm & Soul Publisher of the Year.”
“This achievement reflects the extraordinary impact of SMP‘s songwriters, whose work continues to inspire audiences around the world.”
“Thank you to ASCAP for this honor and to our team for their unwavering commitment to supporting songwriters every day.”
SMP‘s winning songs included Push 2 Start (Tyla), Went Legit (G Herbo), Folded (Kehlani), Man I Need (Olivia Dean), WHATCHU KNO ABOUT ME (Glorilla and Sexyy Red), Mutt (Leon Thomas), Shake It To The Max (Fly) Remix (MOLIY, Silent Addy, Skillibeng & Shenseea) and Rather Lie (The Weeknd and Playboi Carti)
SMP-published writers on those songs included Don Mills (Folded), Paul “Nineteen85” Jeffries (Burning Blue) and GuiltyBeatz (25).
The publisher said its honored writers also included Usher, Jermaine Dupri, Brian Casey, Sounwave, Playboi Carti, Ashley Gorley, Ian James, Spades, Prince Charles, Skillibeng, G Herbo, London Cyr, Gregory Williams, Bobby DeBarge, Michel Jean Legrand, The Notorious B.I.G., Evan Gregory McCoy, DJ Champ, Gangstarr, and Courtlin Jabrae.
Additional songwriters honored at the ceremony included Cardi B, Justin Bieber, PARTYNEXTDOOR, Kali Uchis and Summer Walker.
In April, SMP won Pop Publisher of the Year at the 2026 ASCAP Pop Music Awards for the 10th time.
SMP also took Publisher of the Year at the 2025 BMI R&B/Hip-Hop Awards.
Kendrick Lamar and SZA‘s luther was also named Song of the Year at the 2026 BMI Pop Music Awards in May.
Sony Music Publishing is led by Chairman and CEO Jon Platt.Music Business Worldwide
Odeta Kushi, deputy chief economist at First American in Washington, D.C., said the rate conversation has shifted in a way few people anticipated at the start of the year.
“A rate hike is not inevitable, but it’s no longer unthinkable,” Kushi told Mortgage Professional America. “Earlier this year, the market’s base case was that the Fed would be cutting rates. Today, the conversation has shifted toward how long rates may need to remain elevated and whether inflation risks could eventually require a different policy response.”
On the question of whether inflation stays contained in energy or spills over more broadly, Kushi said that is what will ultimately drive the Fed’s next move.
“If inflation remains concentrated in energy and core inflation stays relatively contained, the Fed can remain patient,” she said. “If higher energy costs begin feeding into transportation, goods, services, and inflation expectations, the conversation changes.”
Kashkari is not alone in moving hawkish. CNBC reported that New York Fed President John Williams said Thursday he expects inflation to ease and sees current policy well-positioned, while Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee said he remains concerned about inflation but declined to speculate on where rates are heading.
Amazon has launched a new promotion for customers who create a free Amazon Business account. Eligible customers can receive 40% off qualifying purchases, up to $150 in savings, through the end of June. This can be an easy way to save on your first Amazon Business order.
Amazon Business is a free account designed for businesses, sole proprietors, nonprofits, and organizations. In addition to this promotion, members can access business-only pricing, quantity discounts, tax-exempt purchasing (where eligible), and tools to manage purchasing for teams.
This is one of the better Amazon Business offers we’ve seen recently. A 40% discount up to $150 can provide significant savings, especially if you’re already planning to buy office supplies, electronics, or other business essentials. Even if you run any type of small side business or sell online, it’s worth creating a free Amazon Business account to see if you’re eligible before the promotion ends on June 30.
Disclaimer: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases made through this article. Using links on the site for Amazon purchases is the best way you can support the site as you normally can’t earn cash back for these purchases. But, you should still check shopping portals such as Rakuten, TopCashback, RebatesMe, ShopBack and others for possible cashback. Your support is always greatly appreciated!
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