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Borrowers who refinanced last year will save on net about $21 billion in interest over 2014, according to the results of Freddie Mac's latest quarterly refinance analysis. The company's report shows the average interest rate reduction among refinancers in the fourth quarter was about 1.5 percentage points, translating into a savings of about 25 percent. Those who refinanced through the Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP) during Q4 saw an average rate reduction of 1.7 percentage points, meanwhile.

The Federal Reserve released Monday its January 2014 Senior Loan Officer Opinion Survey, a poll examining changes in lending standards and demand in the latest quarter. Whether it was because of higher hurdles to clear or last year's rise in interest rates, a moderate fraction of banks reported a drop in demand for prime purchase mortgages, with a combined 47.9 percent saying demand was weaker. Only 19.7 percent saw greater consumer interest in prime residential loans.

For the entire year, industry numbers point to a total of $1.8 trillion in originations, well above what many analysts projected at the opening of the year. Given the current trend of declining mortgage rates and the Federal Housing Finance Agency's expected push to open credit availability at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, FBR Capital Markets says we might see originations in 2014 push to $1.3 trillion or higher, depending on how the next few months play out.

Mortgage Guaranty Insurance Corporation (MGIC) announced the promotion of both Mike Kull and Dean Dardzinski to VP national account manager.

While most housing metrics ended 2013 on a promising growth path, mortgage origination volumes closed out the year on a decidedly sour note, Black Knight Financial Services (BKFS) says in its year-end Mortgage Monitor Report. "[H]igher interest rates and seasonality pushed monthly originations to the lowest level since 2008, and the current interest rate environment seems to have also brought an end to the refinancing wave we've observed for the last several years," said Herb Blecher, SVP of BKFS Data & Analytics.

The Department of Commerce reported Monday that spending in December ran at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $930.5 billion, 0.1 percent above November's revised estimate of $929.9 billion and 5.3 percent ahead of December 2012's $883.6 billion. December's figure was the highest since March 2009, when spending ran at a rate of $955.0 billion. Residential construction came in at a rate of $357.4 billion, its highest since June 2008.

The Surveys of Consumers' Index of Consumer Sentiment, released jointly by Thomson Reuters and the University of Michigan's Survey Research Center, dropped to 81.2 this month from December's 82.5. The monthly decline stands in contrast to the Conference Board's Consumer Confidence Index, which rose for the second straight month in the group's most recent report. The measure of sentiment about current conditions fell slightly to 96.8, while the expectations index was down to 71.2.

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency's (OCC) latest underwriting survey shows lending standards have continued to relax as banks duke it out over a dwindling market. Despite the drop in standards, examiners indicated risk in residential mortgage portfolios remained unchanged or decreased at 87 percent of banks. Still, OCC cautions banks to ensure they're giving "appropriate attention" to underwriting, loan structures, and loan administration.

As companies like Target and Michaels Stores continue to take a drubbing over high-profile data breaches, a report from cybersecurity firm HALOCK Security Labs suggests mortgage lenders may not be doing enough to protect applicants' sensitive financial data. After investigating practices at 63 lenders of varying size, HALOCK found more than 45 companies (70 percent) permitted applicants to send personal and financial information through unencrypted email attachments.

The National Association of Realtors' (NAR) Pending Home Sales Index (PHSI) fell in December to its lowest level in more than two years, with declines reported in all four of the country's major regions. The index, a forward-looking sales indicator based on contract signings, dropped 8.7 percent to 92.4 from a downwardly revised reading of 101.2 in November. December's index was at its lowest measure since October 2011, when it read 92.2.