Ranked 14 of 15 states · median $828/mo · CMS PY2026
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A 40-year-old mortgage broker in Arkansas pays a median $828/month for a Silver plan before subsidies — 14th of 15 on cost. The cheapest plan in the state is $753 from Octave in Arkansas. On counties covered, Arkansas ranks 9 of 15 for this occupation.
Once your work crosses county and state lines, network geography stops being a detail and becomes the whole decision. An HMO contracted in one metro leaves you paying cash 200 miles down the road, and a handful of states filed no PPO at all for 2026. These rankings lead with reach.
Occupational context: Sedentary and high-stress cycles tied to rate swings.
Two things get confused here constantly. Risk exposure decides what coverage you should buy. It does not decide what you are charged — Arkansas carriers rate on age, ZIP, tobacco and family size, full stop. A mortgage broker with a bad back and a healthy 40-year-old office worker in the same county see the same number.
Premium is set by rating area rather than by county, so counties in the same area price identically. Six counties from across Arkansas, cheapest Silver plan for a 40-year-old:
| County | Cheapest Silver @40 | Issuer | Deductible | Carriers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fulton | $753 | Octave | $6,000 | 4 |
| Independence | $753 | Octave | $6,000 | 4 |
| Lee | $753 | Octave | $6,000 | 4 |
| Miller | $753 | Octave | $6,000 | 4 |
| Perry | $753 | Octave | $6,000 | 4 |
| Pulaski | $753 | Octave | $6,000 | 4 |
All six fall in the same rating area, so they price identically at $753. Statewide the range still runs $753 to $879. Coverage by County publishes all 75 Arkansas counties individually.
| Arkansas — network reach | 2026 |
|---|---|
| Counties in the state | 75 |
| Counties with only one carrier | 0 (0%) |
| Plan types available | POS, PPO |
| PPO available on exchange | Yes |
| Carriers filing in the state | 4 |
| Cheapest Silver @40 | $753 — Arkansas |
Arkansas has PPO plans available. For a mortgage broker covering distance, that single fact outweighs premium: 0 of 75 counties here are served by one carrier, so an HMO bought in one metro may leave you out of network for the rest of your route.
Source: CMS Plan Year 2026 Qualified Health Plan Landscape file. 3,900 plan records across 75 Arkansas counties. Full-price filed rates before premium tax credits — verify at enrollment.
Cheaper for the same coverage: Utah ($805), Texas ($807), North Carolina ($828). More expensive: Nebraska ($875).
Side-by-side: Arkansas vs Texas · Arkansas vs North Carolina · Arkansas vs Nebraska
Read the comparison as context, not as a shopping list. Your county of residence determines what you can buy, and for a mortgage broker that is fixed unless you relocate. Where it is actionable is a move already in progress — that is a qualifying life event, and you have 60 days on either side of it.
Deduction categories that generally fit this trade: Licensing, CRM, E&O insurance, lead costs. Note the ordering problem with health premiums: the §162(l) deduction lowers your AGI, and your AGI is what sets your premium tax credit, so the two calculate against each other. That is a CPA conversation and worth having before you enroll, not after.
If your household income is above the subsidy range, ACA is not automatically the answer. There are other categories of coverage that may fit, and they work very differently. That is a conversation, not a web page.
The cheapest Silver plan for a 40-year-old in Arkansas is $753 per month from Octave, with a state median of $828. Both figures are full price before premium tax credits; most buyers pay less after subsidies.
No. Arkansas exchange plans are guaranteed issue and community rated, so a mortgage broker pays exactly what anyone else of the same age in the same ZIP pays. Occupation is not on the application as a rating factor.
Yes. Plan types filed for 2026: POS, PPO.
Arkansas ranks 14 of 15 states covered here, at a median $828 per month. Indiana is cheapest at $558 and Nebraska is most expensive at $875.
Above the cliff. At this income a single-person household receives no premium tax credit for 2026 and pays the full premium.
This occupation sits above the cliff in 17 of the 21 states reported and below it in the other 4, so the answer changes with the state.
What this figure is. It is the median annual wage BLS reports for Loan Officers (SOC 13-2072) in Arkansas. BLS surveys wage and salary workers and excludes the self-employed, so it is a benchmark for the occupation in this state — not the income of a self-employed mortgage broker. Premium tax credit eligibility is set by household modified adjusted gross income and household size, not by occupation, so treat this as a reference point rather than a determination of what you qualify for.
Why the cliff is back. The enhanced premium tax credits expired on 31 December 2025. For plan year 2026 the 400% FPL limit applies again, so household income above $62,600 ends premium tax credit eligibility outright.
This page compares states. For Arkansas specifically — county-by-county carriers, plan data and enrollment help — I publish that on Coverage by County, including a page written for Mortgage Brokers in Arkansas and a blog covering deductibles, subsidies and special enrollment.
Arkansas has 4 carriers filing across 75 counties right now. That list is rebuilt every year, so what you can choose from in November may not match what you see today — and for a mortgage broker buying your own cover, who stays matters more than the headline rate.
On price the only honest number today is national: the Peterson-KFF read of 2027 filings puts the median proposed rise near 15%, spanning −1% to 54%. Final Arkansas rates are not approved, so any precise 2027 figure quoted for this state is guesswork.
The window opens November 1, 2026, and December 15 is the date worth writing down — it is what secures January 1 cover in Arkansas and everywhere else. You will find later dates quoted; they stem from a 2025 rule that was vacated in June 2026 and is under appeal.
In your favour: PPOs are sold in all 75 Arkansas counties. That is the type most likely to pay toward out-of-network care, and worth defending at renewal if your work as a mortgage broker takes you around.
Nothing about 2027 is urgent yet, which is exactly why it is worth ten minutes now. Come November you will be choosing between Arkansas’s carriers under a deadline; today you can do it without one.
Give me a ZIP and I will tell you three things:
Rates for Mortgage Brokers in Arkansas are set by county, not by occupation. Start with your ZIP and I will show you the plans actually filed where you live.