- 2 days ago
This week on Power House, Diego sits down with Dan Sogorka, GM of Rocket Pro, for a forward-looking conversation about the tools, technology, and strategic shifts Rocket is deploying as they move into 2026.
Dan offers an inside look at how Rocket Pro is investing in AI-driven efficiencies, reshaping its broker support model, and strengthening its position through recent acquisitions. He also dives into the story behind the Broker Manifesto and how it fits into Rocket’s broader mission to build trust and choice for brokers nationwide.
From competition to technology, narrative change to partner support, this episode breaks down how Rocket Pro is positioning itself to lead in one of the industry’s most dynamic and competitive segments.
Here’s a glimpse of what you’ll learn:
Why Rocket Pro is energized heading into 2026 with a renewed innovation roadmap
How new AI tools elevate broker efficiency and streamline everyday workflows
The strategic role of recent acquisitions in strengthening Rocket’s market position
Why the Broker Manifesto is central to reshaping industry perception
How Rocket Pro plans to support business growth for broker partners
What more events and in-person engagement will mean for brokers in 2026
Why Rocket’s strategy emphasizes tools that enable choice—not constraint
The value of stronger, more intentional broker partnerships
How Rocket’s narrative is evolving as the company reinvests in the broker ecosystem
Why innovation remains Rocket Pro’s north star for 2026 and beyond
The Power House podcast brings the biggest names in housing to answer hard-hitting questions about industry trends, operational and growth strategy, and leadership. Join HousingWire president Diego Sanchez every Thursday morning for candid conversations with industry leaders to learn how they’re differentiating themselves from the competition. Hosted and produced by the HousingWire Content Studio.
Dan offers an inside look at how Rocket Pro is investing in AI-driven efficiencies, reshaping its broker support model, and strengthening its position through recent acquisitions. He also dives into the story behind the Broker Manifesto and how it fits into Rocket’s broader mission to build trust and choice for brokers nationwide.
From competition to technology, narrative change to partner support, this episode breaks down how Rocket Pro is positioning itself to lead in one of the industry’s most dynamic and competitive segments.
Here’s a glimpse of what you’ll learn:
Why Rocket Pro is energized heading into 2026 with a renewed innovation roadmap
How new AI tools elevate broker efficiency and streamline everyday workflows
The strategic role of recent acquisitions in strengthening Rocket’s market position
Why the Broker Manifesto is central to reshaping industry perception
How Rocket Pro plans to support business growth for broker partners
What more events and in-person engagement will mean for brokers in 2026
Why Rocket’s strategy emphasizes tools that enable choice—not constraint
The value of stronger, more intentional broker partnerships
How Rocket’s narrative is evolving as the company reinvests in the broker ecosystem
Why innovation remains Rocket Pro’s north star for 2026 and beyond
The Power House podcast brings the biggest names in housing to answer hard-hitting questions about industry trends, operational and growth strategy, and leadership. Join HousingWire president Diego Sanchez every Thursday morning for candid conversations with industry leaders to learn how they’re differentiating themselves from the competition. Hosted and produced by the HousingWire Content Studio.
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NewsTranscript
00:00Our partners can now kind of choose what do they want their business to be like and how do I want to work with Rocket and in what regard and kind of like plan for the future, right?
00:12Like that's been one of the really cool things over the past 14 months is really seeing even in that small time period, our partners' businesses develop based on like their hopes and dreams and how Rocket helps them get there.
00:30Welcome to Powerhouse, where we interview the biggest names in housing and ask them about their strategy for growth.
00:42I'm Diego Sanchez, president of HousingWire, and my guest today is Daniel Segorka, GM of Rocket Pro at Rocket.
00:51Dan, it's so great to have you on the show.
00:53Thanks, Diego. Great to be here. Good to see you again, man.
00:57Yeah, likewise. I'm really looking forward to our conversation.
00:59It was a big year for Rocket and Rocket Pro.
01:04What innovations and changes are you most excited about as we head into 2026?
01:11Oh, man. A lot to think about there.
01:15We had a massive year.
01:17I'm about 14 months in, and I think, you know, I think we're like spring loaded and ready to go, right?
01:27Like we spent some time diving into the business, getting the team right, working on some foundational issues.
01:34And the things we dropped at RPX this year around our AI suite, I think are pretty amazing.
01:43And so it's been really exciting to spend the last 30 days out in the field with our partners using these tools in the wild and seeing their reactions.
01:53I think for a lot of people, it's their first time really experiencing AI tools in their hands that are making a real difference with how they work.
02:06And they can kind of connect the dots on like, oh, this is what the future is going to be like, right?
02:12There's been so much hype and so much stories and AI is going to steal your job and maybe it will and maybe it won't.
02:18But I think people haven't had to really engage at scale with something that meaningfully changes the way they work.
02:27And I think when they start doing that, they get more excited because they're like, oh, this is the future.
02:34I can like 10x myself, not something I have to be afraid of, right?
02:39So that's what I'm kind of most excited about, at least in the past month.
02:44I love that.
02:46And we'll talk more about RPX in a moment, but let's dive into that AI tool set.
02:53What are the different AI tools that you've launched and how do they help your broker partners 10x themselves?
03:00Sure.
03:00So the two main tools are Navigate and Assist.
03:04And each of those has a number of apps, if you will, underneath them, which helps drive your day-to-day business.
03:14So I like to think of it as how do we make every broker as good as the best broker in the world?
03:21And so we really built this language model off of years of rocket discussions between bankers and clients.
03:35So when you talk about kind of a mortgage-enabled platform, this thing knows everything about mortgage.
03:41And so now when you come in, you can plan and schedule your day.
03:48You can drop in documents.
03:50You can find leads.
03:51You can figure out how to approach different types of people.
03:56You can figure out, based on today's news, what should I talk about relative to specific products?
04:01Just like massive amounts of content and data that allows you just to be much smarter at what you do.
04:10And we're already talking about experts in their field, right?
04:13But brokers are like anybody else in mortgage.
04:17And you know you've spent some time in this industry now.
04:20There are so many niches and verticals within mortgage.
04:24You can spend your whole career in it and not understand 90% of the playing field, right?
04:31Think about how many people you know that have been originators their whole career that know nothing about capital markets.
04:36Or I'm in servicing.
04:37I really don't know anything about origination.
04:39Like there's a lot to learn.
04:42And the deeper you go, the more complex it is.
04:44So for the ability for brokers then to just be able to get smart about everything that maybe they haven't focused on and kind of expand the palette of what they can bring to the market, that's what these tools can do.
04:56So and then specifics, like let's take your loan estimate, your head-to-head with your company versus another company.
05:05You can drop both loan estimates into the engine and basically say, pick out 10 things here as to why my deal is better than this other deal, right?
05:15Or how do I reframe this around pricing and rate?
05:18How can I have a discussion with a 65-year-old woman who might not be comfortable talking about X, Y, or Z?
05:28And it really dials it into that exact specific.
05:31So that's kind of on the navigate.
05:33Like how do you build your business?
05:34One of the great examples of this is like back to this, you know, focused on your niche.
05:41Like we have a ton of people that do purchase.
05:44But then they are not really good at doing the recapture because it's just not their business.
05:48They're going out and doing more purchase.
05:50And they're like, oh, I don't do that much.
05:51So what does that mean to me?
05:53And so we say, okay, well, you do three deals a month on the purchase side.
05:58So that's 36 a year.
06:00So over the last three years, you've done 100 deals.
06:02Let's just drop them in and see what we learn, right?
06:06And boom, here's 20 clients that are in the money for rate and term.
06:11Here's how much they can save.
06:12Here's what you should say.
06:13Here's the order in which you should call them based upon kind of propensity to close.
06:18Like, and so, hey, just spend an hour a day now doing that.
06:21Each day, and you're going to double your business, right?
06:25So you're really empowering brokers with some of the tools that are being utilized by the
06:33big servicers in terms of recapture.
06:35Like, here's your ability to reach out very quickly to all of your borrowers that are in
06:40the money.
06:41That's right.
06:42I mean, we're taking everything, you know, from a rocket perspective.
06:45It's like you start with, you know, the branding, the enterprise tool set, the AI investment,
06:51all of those things and putting it into the hands of our local broker partners, right?
06:56We think of this ecosystem as something that we want to extend to everybody in the United
07:02States as we, you know, help everyone home, right?
07:05And so our partners are our boots on the ground sales force on every street in America.
07:10So why wouldn't we give them every tool for them to grow their business to the extent they
07:15want to, right?
07:16I love that.
07:17So it's been in the news all year.
07:21Rocket did some big deals this year, some very big deals, but translate the Redfin acquisition
07:28and the Mr. Cooper acquisition into what it means for these boots on the ground that you
07:35have across the country, your broker partners at Rocket Pro.
07:38Yeah, super exciting.
07:40I'm glad we got the last deal closed a couple of weeks ago.
07:45So it's been amazing now to be able to, you know, sit in rooms in Detroit with these three
07:51teams together.
07:52Just the, you know, the brainpower and the knowledge base and kind of the desire has just
08:00been incredible, right?
08:01And so for me, it's been really special to be able to take, you know, that deal thesis
08:11and apply it to the pro space, right?
08:14So when you think about what we have now as a company at Rocket, you know, 65 million-ish
08:22unique monthly visitors to our digital website with high mortgage and high real estate intent,
08:27intent rather, the largest, I would say, most efficient mortgage engine in the world, and
08:36then the largest, most efficient servicing platform in the world, which today, now with
08:42the Cooper acquisition, can be white-labeled, right?
08:46They do white-label servicing, which Rocket couldn't do.
08:48So when you think about what that means for our broker partners, it's like, now we have
08:55this whole new category of home ownership that has those kind of three legs of the stool,
09:01and we can put all of them to work on behalf of our partners.
09:05Lead flow on the front end.
09:08The ability to, you know, we can, we're known for being able to, you know, close at scale.
09:14So if you want to double, triple, 10x your business, you know Rocket's going to be able
09:17to handle that.
09:21Really consistent, really strong pricing, right?
09:23So all the things from a good counterparty perspective, and then the ability to service
09:27that loan, if we want to, with our partner's face on the servicing statement, right?
09:34So really unique capabilities that we can bring to really change the way that market dynamic
09:43works, right?
09:45Where you can, our partners can now kind of choose what do they want their business to
09:51be like, and how do I want to work with Rocket, and in what regard, and kind of like plan for
09:58the future, right?
09:59Like, that's been one of the really cool things over the past 14 months is really seeing,
10:05even in that small time period, our partners' businesses develop based on like their hopes
10:12and dreams, and how Rocket helps them get there.
10:15Whether it's a small shop that was like, man, I was just scraping by doing two deals a month.
10:21Now you're helping me do 10 deals a month.
10:23Like, that's changed my life, right?
10:26And then the big guys who were like, I want to be, you know, I want to have 1500 LOs, and
10:32I can't do that without you, Rocket.
10:34And so how can the tools and things that we can deliver help them and their model too?
10:38So yeah, it's going to be, 2026 is going to be pretty amazing.
10:45Yeah, that's really exciting.
10:47And I've heard so many mortgage C-suite leaders express excitement for the Wholesale Channel this
10:55year.
10:56It's been kind of amazing.
10:57Why do you think TPO has so much mojo right now?
11:02It's a good question.
11:04And, you know, I think, I mean, certainly when you see leaders like Rocket double down
11:15on something, what I've noticed is that people tend to follow, right?
11:19So you do have, you know, this mentality of like, well, if they're doing it, you know,
11:27we should try to do it, right?
11:29And so I think we've seen, you know, a bit of a copycat move in the space where people
11:37have seen this, there's these two big players, and maybe I can just scrounge around at the
11:43bottom and pick up some scraps while they're kind of fighting it out, right?
11:47So I think it's kind of like those two dynamics where people are kind of trying to lean in and
11:52do it.
11:54And I also think, you know, the space is growing, right?
11:57As brokers get more share of the overall market, obviously that piece of the pie becomes bigger.
12:05The other piece becomes smaller.
12:07And, you know, you want to be where the growth is, you know?
12:12Absolutely.
12:12So you talked about your RPX event when we opened this conversation, and you generated some
12:20real industry buzz with that event.
12:22Are you planning to do more Rocket Pro events for your broker partners in 2026?
12:28Yeah, we're actually planning on doing a lot more.
12:31We're going to, RPX is going to be an annual event next year.
12:36I think it'll probably be three times as big as it was this year.
12:40We do a big, a series of events around the Rocket Mortgage Classic in Detroit where we host
12:46the golf event.
12:47So we'll continue to do that.
12:49We're doing more individualized partner events because, you know, when people come to Detroit
12:58and see everything that Rocket's done for the city and how it's so different than what
13:05they thought and they get to spend time to hear our story and dive in, like, they kind
13:09of become raving fans, you know?
13:11And so, like, our larger partners ask us, like, hey, we're onboarding 50 new LOs.
13:18Like, when can we get them to Detroit?
13:20Because once we do that, we know the magic clicks and, like, their Rocket for life, right?
13:24So we want to continue to do some of that.
13:27But we're also going to do things a little bit differently next year in that we're going
13:31to go across America in a lot of different ways and be in local communities, maybe where
13:37we haven't been before, and try to do events around the country.
13:43So I think it'll be, you know, kind of like flagship events in Detroit, some customized
13:47stuff, more events around the country.
13:49And there's segments that have certain trade shows or certain things that they do where
13:58we might be under-indexed from, you know, a partnership connection that we want to lean
14:04into more this year as well.
14:05So definitely, we'll be out there even bigger than we were in 25.
14:10Yeah, and I wonder if you have the opportunity to start to introduce your broker partners to
14:16some Redfin agents.
14:17Since you now have boots on the ground on the real estate side as well.
14:20Yeah, we do a ton of that with Redfin and with real estate agents all over the country.
14:27We do, we probably did about one event per month in 2025, where we kind of work with a
14:36real estate entity and then invite all of our local partners from that area to come in and
14:42mingle and hopefully meet and find good business partners.
14:46So we'll continue to do that as well.
14:48So at RPX, you unveiled Rocket Pro's broker manifesto, which also generated some industry
14:56buzz.
14:56Could you walk me through the why behind this manifesto?
15:02Yeah, I think, you know, part of my goal when I came here was to really change the narrative
15:10around Rocket's role in the space.
15:14I felt like, you know, when I dove in and spent time with the team and, you know, kind
15:21of where their heads were at and what they were focused on, I felt like there was a story there
15:25that wasn't really being told accurately.
15:27And so we wanted to put, you know, some muscle behind that and really show that, you know, the creative
15:38folks at Rocket, you know, let's get them thinking about how to show up in the pro space
15:44and do some of the great work that they do that really, I don't, no one else in the space
15:49can really talk, you know, I think like how Rocket can talk, you know, when we really feel
15:56strongly about something and the creative talent we have.
16:00I just think the product is so differentiated.
16:04And so I was really excited to do that for the pro space.
16:08And really, we're just scratching the surface of what that is with the manifesto and, you
16:14know, the way we want to show up and the way that we portray our partners in the community
16:20and to the world.
16:22Yeah, so let's dive in a little bit to some details there.
16:25How do you see the manifesto impacting day-to-day operations at Rocket Pro and how you show up
16:32for your broker partners?
16:34It's honestly, we don't really have to change anything.
16:38This was more about telling people what we do, you know, what we believe in every day,
16:43right, and putting it out there.
16:45And I think, again, I'm always surprised in a certain way when we engage with people,
16:54whether it's through something like the manifesto or, you know, we had 100 credit unions and
17:01banks on site for a day and a half in Detroit a week and a half ago.
17:06And inevitably, people always say, I had this perception of Rocket, and it's so different.
17:13And I'm so glad I did this.
17:15And I can't wait to work with you, right?
17:17Like, it's just amazing how often that happens.
17:19And so I think, you know, we're no longer going to take it for granted that we have
17:25to kind of shout that from the rooftops because there's so many kind of hearts and minds still
17:30yet to change.
17:32And when we have people that maybe have worked with somebody else and they come over or they
17:37haven't had a lot of exposure to us and then they do, it's just so gratifying because they're
17:43like, so kind of amazed at the difference, you know?
17:47So it's really fun.
17:49It's one of the most fun parts of the job, frankly.
17:52It sounds like you really view this as uncovering what was already there as opposed to a real
17:58shift in strategy or the way that you deal with your partners.
18:04Yeah, I think on one hand, yes.
18:07On the other hand, it also enabled us to, like, you know, set a high bar publicly, right?
18:14And then just have everybody, you know, when you give somebody that as a team, when you
18:18give a team that high bar, it just feels like people are more fired up to do it, right?
18:24It's like, well, yeah, I worked hard every day and maybe people see it or maybe they don't.
18:28But now when you set up and you're going to say, we're going to be 10 out of 10 every
18:31day, people are like, yeah, let's go, you know, like, let's be 10 out of 10.
18:35So I think it's given us more energy.
18:37I think people were really proud to do it.
18:39I think for the last couple of years, people felt maybe like, you know, they weren't able
18:49to, like, fully show up or, you know, felt like Rocket was holding back and, you know,
18:54why aren't we doing X, Y, or Z?
18:56And so I think to go out and do that made the team more energized, if that makes sense.
19:02Yeah, I mean, it felt to me like a very natural extension of the amazing campaign you did on
19:09the B2C side around the Super Bowl earlier this year, where, you know, you have these
19:16really touching and authentic ads.
19:20And then you went back to the stadium and people were still singing the song from the ad.
19:24It was pretty incredible.
19:25And I feel like the manifesto, including the video that you have on the landing page for
19:30RPX and for the manifesto, like, really captures that authentic sort of heartwarming spirit.
19:36Yeah.
19:37I mean, I thought it was just amazing work.
19:39And when I saw it for the first time, you know, with kind of the taglines of, like, help
19:44everyone home and own the dream, I just felt like they were so perfect for Rocket Pro, right?
19:52I almost felt like they were better for Rocket Pro than they were just for Rocket, right?
19:57Because you just have this intersection of owning the dream and our partners helping everyone
20:04home.
20:05They're actually doing the work.
20:06You know, they're on the front lines with people.
20:09And then you think about small businesses in American communities and trying to, you know,
20:15make that more tight knit and keep more money in the community and, you know, real estate agents
20:20working with local brokers and then they're sponsoring the baseball team.
20:24You know what I mean?
20:24It's like all the positive things about American home ownership are just so right in line with
20:34what we were talking about and what we did and what our partners do every day that it was
20:41a privilege to be involved with it.
20:44Amazing.
20:44Yeah.
20:45So let's wrap with a question about your competition.
20:49We talked about the wholesale channel being hot earlier.
20:53In particular, you have two very tough competitors in PennyMac and UWM.
21:01PennyMac is really making a point of pushing into wholesale this year and next year.
21:09How do you, at Rocket Pro, compete and grow market share in 2026 when there are so many
21:18other lenders, including PennyMac and UWM, who want to do the same thing?
21:23Good question.
21:24You know, I think, first off, you know, when you talk about scale and technology and AI,
21:32we're pretty far ahead of the pack.
21:36I think when we're showing tools to people who work with those lenders and others, they're
21:42essentially like no one is doing anything like this.
21:44Like you are the only game in town.
21:48Then when you think about, you know, the combination of Redfin, Rocket and Mr. Cooper, you know,
21:54Varun talks about it like we're a category of one.
21:57There's no one who has anywhere near those assets to bring together for our partners.
22:01And so we're really, you know, what, one or two weeks into that.
22:05So very, very early stages in terms of kind of like unleashing that in the market at scale.
22:14And then I think the other thing is like we're about broker choice, right?
22:19And I just think that's the winning strategy, which is I'm going to give you tools.
22:25I'm going to be the best counterparty.
22:27But I want to earn your business every day.
22:30You know, we at Pro, we have a slogan, earn the partnership, right?
22:34Like it's just such an odd concept to me to be like, yeah, I'm going to lock you in to
22:40doing business with me and not let you do business with somebody else.
22:44Like it's just, I don't think that's the right strategy, right?
22:48So when I think about it, the market, I think we're kind of category of one in terms of capabilities
22:54and scale.
22:55I think we have the right model and I think our heart's in the right place, right?
22:59I mean, we want to help everyone home.
23:02We want to help Americans get into home ownership.
23:05We're not trying to fight some stale battle against somebody.
23:09You know what I mean?
23:10And so I think when your heart's in the right place and you have the right tools and the
23:13right strategy, I think you're going to win.
23:17Yeah, I do know what you mean.
23:18And Dan, it's been really great catching up with you today.
23:22We got a chance to talk pretty soon after you were hired by Rocket Pro, and it's pretty
23:29amazing to see all that you've accomplished over the past year and also how excited you
23:37are about the strategy heading into 2026.
23:40Really appreciate the time today.
23:41Thanks, Diego.
23:42See you next time.
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