Refinance

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

Economic recovery should soar into the summer as vaccination rates climb and restrictions loosen up, but low inventory is likely to limit mortgage activity into the next year, according to Fannie Mae.

Hedge accounting will align Fannie’s reporting with competitor Freddie Mac, and will address a mismatch between the recorded value of financial instruments used to offset interest-rate volatility on mortgages and the loans themselves.

Only $89 billion of the $362 billion in new single-family volume came from purchase mortgages.

Rising cases and vaccine issues caused bond yields to fall, but inflationary pressures will likely reverse that course.

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

Mortgage rates that are rising in tandem with a recovering economy dampened borrower activity, even with prime homebuying season underway.

While the economic recovery and stimulus checks drove upward movement in purchases, it wasn’t enough to offset tumbling refinance activity.

Servicers struggled to bring back their borrowers as the overall retention rate crept down to a nadir in the fourth quarter, according to Black Knight.

A slight lift in the purchase market paired with a surprising reversal in the size of the average loan, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.