Tag Archives: Purchase Loans

Profits at independent mortgage banks nationwide jumped from the first quarter to the second as loan production spiked, according to a trend report from business advisory firm Richey May & Co. "Independent mortgage bankers' unit volume, expenses and margins were very close to those they experienced in the third quarter of 2013," said Keith May, managing director of advisory services at Richey May.

Based on weekly data released by the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA), macroeconomics firm Capital Economics calculated a 0.4 percent monthly decline in mortgage applications in August. It was the third drop in the last three months, following declines of 0.1 percent in June and 3.4 percent in July.

Freddie Mac's Multi-Indicator Market Index (MiMi) rose 0.04 percent from May to June, ending the year's first half at a reading of 73. "As we see the economy slowly normalizing we're starting to see its effects in the housing market as well, albeit very slowly," said Freddie Mac Chief Economist Frank Nothaft. "The good news is the big housing markets, of which some were also the hardest hit, continue to improve."

Applications for mortgage loans increased last week, helped along by gains in both purchase and refinance loans. The Mortgage Bankers Association's (MBA) latest Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey shows loan application volumes rose a seasonally adjusted 2.8 percent for the week ending August 22, doubling the rate of growth recorded the previous week.

The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) reported a 1.4 percent seasonally adjusted bump in application volumes for the week ending August 15, a partial reversal from the 2.7 percent decline reported the week prior. While last week's results were lifted by improvement in applications for conventional mortgages, they were also weighed down by a 5.9 percent decrease in applications for government mortgages.

Despite a slight easing in credit standards, the percentage of loan applications closed in July slipped to a three-month low, Ellie Mae reported Wednesday in its monthly Origination Insight Report. Tracking loan applications initiated 90 days prior, the company calculated an overall closing rate of 57.7 percent last month, down from 60.7 percent in June and 57.8 percent in May.

The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) reported a 2.7 percent decrease in mortgage application volume from a week earlier in its Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending August 8. Both the Refinance Index and the Purchase Index both fell to their lowest levels in months, dropping 4 percent and 1 percent, respectively.

Mortgage bankers group Lenders One released Tuesday the results of new study on loan officer retention conducted by Majestic Consulting. According to the results, most loan officers would be willing to leave a higher-paying position if they feel management at another company has a better grasp on fulfillment and business development.

After experiencing a post-holiday decline, applications for home mortgages picked up again last week, the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) reported. MBA's Market Composite Index, a weekly measure of mortgage loan application volumes, bumped up 2.4 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis for the week ending July 18, the group said.

While the time it took to close a loan in June increased just slightly from the previous month, the closing rate reached a record high of 61 percent, according to Ellie Mae's Origination Insight Report. Among loans originated 90 days before the report, 60.7 percent closed in June, the report states. This is up from 57.8 percent in May. "Clearly, lenders are working harder than ever to convert and close loans," said Jonathan Corr, president and COO of Ellie Mae.