Friday Harbor and NewFed Mortgage honored with PROGRESS in Lending’s 2026 Connections Award

SEATTLE, Wash. -- Friday Harbor, an AI pre-underwriting platform that helps loan officers assemble complete and compliant loan files in real time, has been named a recipient of PROGRESS in Lending's 2026 Connections Award alongside NewFed Mortgage Corp. (NewFed), a full-service residential mortgage lender operating in more than 20 states. The recognition honors a partnership that allowed NewFed to grow production without the hiring cycles and overhead that typically accompany scale.

NewFed rolled out Friday Harbor across its origination and fulfillment teams with a straightforward premise: catch problems before they reach an underwriter. The platform evaluates loan files against automated underwriting system (AUS) findings, investor guidelines and NewFed's own credit overlays early in the process, so processors and loan officers can resolve issues while borrowers are still engaged.

The results have been significant. Since implementing Friday Harbor, NewFed processors have increased monthly file capacity by 36%, while underwriters review 35% more loans. Application-to-funded cycle times have dropped from 32 days to 26 days, and NewFed funded approximately $170 million more in loans during 2025 than the prior year without adding a single fulfillment hire.

"NewFed came to us with a clear-eyed goal: grow production without the headcount increases that erode margin," said Theo Ellis, CEO of Friday Harbor. "What made this partnership work was their willingness to give us a real look at how their operation actually runs: the workflows, the friction points, the edge cases. The results speak to what's possible when a technology partner understands your operation from the inside out."

Now in its third year, the Connections Award honors partnerships and integrations that are advancing mortgage lending through collaboration, innovation and measurable business results. The collaboration extended well beyond a typical lender-vendor relationship. NewFed joined Friday Harbor as an early design partner, contributing feedback on real production workflows and loan scenarios that directly shaped the platform's development.

For a full list of 2026 Connections Award winners, visit https://mymortgagemindset.com/

About Friday Harbor

Friday Harbor is an AI pre-underwriting platform that helps lenders identify and resolve potential issues earlier in the origination process. By analyzing borrower documents, appraisals and income calculations against investor guidelines and lender overlays, the platform helps teams deliver cleaner files, achieve fewer underwriting touches and improve individual productivity. For more information, visit https://fridayharbor.ai/.

Related link: https://fridayharbor.ai/

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