NAMB puts brokers at the head of the pack

Mortgage originations continue shift to fixed-rate products from ARMsMortgagePress.comMBA, interest-only loans, first-time homebuyer, FHA, reverse mortgages Fixed-rate mortgages dominated mortgage originations in the first half of 2007, according to the recently-released Mortgage Bankers Association's Mortgage Originations Survey. The fixed-rate share showed a big jump from the second half of 2006. Key findings from the survey include (unless otherwise noted, percentages are based on dollar volume of originated loans): •For first mortgages, fixed-rate loans, including interest-only (IO) loans, accounted for 53.4 percent of loans (67.4 percent based on number of loans) in the first half of 2007, compared to 46.2 percent (60.5 percent based on number of loans) in the second half of 2006. •IOs accounted for 31.1 percent of originations in the first half of 2007, compared to 28.5 percent in the second half of 2006. However, fixed-rate IOs accounted for 32.5 percent of all IOs in the first half of 2007, compared to 21.2 percent in the second half of 2006. •First-time homebuyer purchases represented 26.9 percent of home purchases in the first half of 2007, unchanged from the second half of 2006. The average loan amount was $202,265, which was less than the average loan amount of $233,433 for non-first-time homebuyers. •Of the current period originations, 37.1 percent were for single-family attached homes, 58.5 percent for single-family detached homes, 0.7 percent for manufactured and mobile homes, and 3.8 percent for two- to four-unit structures. Approximately 54.3 percent of single-family attached home originations were for condos or cooperatives, with the remainder as other single-family attached properties such as townhouses, duplexes and row houses. •From the second half of 2006 to the first half of 2007, reverse mortgage dollar volume decreased 92.4 percent. The Federal Housing Administration's Home Equity Conversion Mortgages (HECMs) decreased by 92.4 percent and other reverse mortgages increased 13 percent, while the number of reverse mortgage loans decreased 93.1 percent. This result was driven by a 92.4 percent decrease in smaller balance HECM loans which comprised 86.9 percent of the dollar volume of reverse mortgages; therefore, the 13 percent increase in (typically) large dollar balance reverse mortgages did not have a discernible effect on the overall trend of reverse mortgage dollar volume. •The percentage of second mortgage originations that were closed-end decreased to 27.2 percent of dollars and 35.8 percent of loans in the first half of 2007 from 34.2 percent of dollars and 43.3 percent of loans in the second half of 2006. For more information, visit www.mortgagebankers.org.