Mortgage Bankers Association

Fewer borrowers are suspending payments for pandemic hardships but some who got back on track are having trouble again, and deadlines could spur a final round of new requests.

Increases in refinances, both in applications and average size, help lead overall numbers higher

Demand was strongest at the high end of the market, which pushed loan amounts up for the fourth straight month.

A spike in government-sponsored applications helped lead indexes to their largest gains in several weeks.

Average loan size also continues to increase, as demand remains high and costs in homebuilding materials rise this year.

Short-term late payment rates rose again and later stage delinquencies remain at elevated levels compared to those prior to the pandemic, the Mortgage Bankers Association said.

The modifiable templates are a follow-up to a similar notification the organization created in 2019 for lender use.

But the percentage of weekly applications in that category was closer to 60%, the Mortgage Bankers Association found.

However, the number of borrowers who failed to remit payment but were not yet 30 days overdue increased.

Volumes were at a record high in the final quarter of 2020 but lenders didn’t make quite as much since gains on loan sales to the secondary market fell.