Daily News 6/17/2015
June 17, 2015
Wednesday – June 17
Fannie Mae released its second quarter 2015 Mortgage Lender Sentiment Survey with the main thrust being that lenders are feeling more positive on purchase demand, profit margins and credit standards. The report went on to reveal that lenders’ near term outlook for both purchase and profit margins are at high levels, and above the 2014 results. In addition, more lenders feel that credit is loosening a bit rather than tightening.
Homeowners who owe more than their home is worth received some good news today as analytics firm CoreLogic reported that the underwater mortgage share was down to 10.2% in the first quarter of 2015. More than 254,000 properties regained positive equity in the first three months of this year. Negative equity, often referred to as “underwater” or “upside down,” refers to borrowers who owe more on their mortgages than their homes are worth. Negative equity can occur because of a decline in value, an increase in mortgage debt or a combination of both.
The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) said today that mortgage rates increased again in the latest week, hitting highs for 2015. The MBA said that the 30-year rate mortgage with conforming loan balances of $417,000 or less, increased to 4.22% from 4.17% with 0.46 in points. Though mortgage rates have been edging higher, historically, they are still near the lower end of the range dating back to 1971, when Freddie Mac began tracking rates.
