National Mortgage Professional reported May 5 that the Bureau raised the coverage threshold to 1,000 small-business loans a year, up from 100. It trimmed required data, excluded merchant cash advances and some agricultural and small-dollar products, and lowered the “small business” revenue definition to about $1 million. Compliance is based on 2026–2027 activity, with reporting in 2028.
The MBA supported the rewrite as more workable. The policy fight over the statute itself is not over. For a business owner, the near-term effect is practical: more community and independent lenders stay in the market because the compliance tax is lower.
That is good for access to working capital and owner-occupied financing. It is not a loosening of credit standards. You still need a file that underwrites.
Sources: National Mortgage Professional (May 5, 2026); CFPB Section 1071 / Regulation B final rule.