Offering financial support through customer life stage journeys is part of the play.

They’re no better off than millennials at the same age.

UK neobank Monzo has agreed to acquire online mortgage broker Habito as it expands its homeownership features—including tracking and brokering home loans—in its app. Neobank super apps create unique banking journeys that engage customers based on different needs as their financial lives progress. With an integrated mortgage broker, Monzo ties together its home insurance product and mortgage-tracking feature—and could debut a direct mortgage product in the future.

The share of rental applicants who are more than 90 days delinquent on student loans increased from 15% in January 2025 to 32% in May, according to a just-released TransUnion report. Credit score data reflects these delinquencies, with lower-scoring consumers faring the worst. Consumers’ struggles with student loan repayments highlight a problem for financial institutions (FIs) on the hook for private-loan defaults. And as consumers delay expensive financial decisions like buying a house in favor of reducing student loan debt, demand for credit like mortgages and auto loans will suffer.

Wealthfront, a roboadvisory wealth tech, announced Wealthfront Home Lending, a mortgage platform for purchase loans and refinancing. It will offer fixed- and adjustable-rate conventional and jumbo loans up to $5 million. Wealthfront Home Lending will for now be an incremental revenue source. But it threatens banks’ mortgage business by accelerating growth in digital mortgage companies. Online lenders like Rocket Mortgage already compete in the space on customer convenience, digital experience, and mortgage rates. Banks will struggle to catch up.

Many younger prospective homebuyers have been waiting out mortgage rates in hopes of saving money, contributing to plateaued demand for new homes. However, creative or atypical mortgage products could spur demand. In this challenging economic environment, FIs have an opportunity to gain long-term loyalty by offering products that allow customers to realize their homeownership dreams. These products acknowledge the uniqueness of consumers’ individual financial situations. FIs should move beyond a one-size-fits-all approach and develop a full suite of specialized loan products. FIs can build these products in-house or partner with fintechs and other lenders to get them to market faster.

The news: After facing early-career challenges from the Great Recession and then the pandemic, many millennials are now wealthier than previous generations were at the same age. But a significant number remain anxious about their financial future and worry that their wealth could disappear, per The Wall Street Journal. Why this matters for banks: Just as Gen Zers feel they need to earn a whopping $587,800 per year to achieve financial success, millennials may need a reality check from their banking providers so they can productively work toward their financial goals.

The news: A recent Equifax report indicates that consumers are struggling with their household financial health and ability to pay mortgages. This will have a negative impact on the home lending market for the foreseeable future. Our take: They’ll need to proactively shift their risk management and lending strategies in anticipation of increased stress on their mortgage portfolios. Meticulously monitoring delinquency rates, enhancing early intervention programs for struggling homeowners, and potentially adjusting underwriting criteria can help mitigate future risks. Banks can also diversify revenue streams beyond traditional mortgage origination to offset potential profitability declines.

Learn which mortgage lending market disruptors financial institutions should prepare for—and possibly leverage to attract more customers—in 2025.

Homeownership literacy is lacking in the US, and banks can help fill the gap.

Rates are hovering around 7% and customers waiting to buy may need some alternative strategies.

This move could spur demand for financial institutions’ consumer lending products like mortgages. Get ready to compete for this business.

Financial institutions are vying with nonbanks for customers in a sluggish lending market. Updating their marketing, lending, and product strategies can help attract and keep customers, slowing the outflow to nonbank lenders.

Disparities in which groups receive these deals led the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) to ask questions about fair lending practices.