The total number of loans originated for home purchases fell 5% in 2011 from the previous year, while the number of loans of all types fell 10%, according to data released by the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council.
The FFIEC released data Tuesday on mortgage lending transactions at 7,632 U.S. financial institutions covered by the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act. Covered institutions include banks, savings associations, credit unions and mortgage companies.
The 2011 HMDA data reflect a continued heavy reliance on loans backed by the Federal Housing Administration. For home purchase lending, the FHA share of first-lien loans rose every year from 2007 (7%) to 2010 (36%), but then fell to 31% percent in 2011.
The data also include information on loan pricing and reflect the second full year of data reported under revised loan pricing rules, which determine whether a loan is classified as “higher priced.” Lenders now report loans with annual percentage rates that are 1.5 percentage points above the rates reported by Freddie Mac in its mortgage rate survey for first lien loans and 3.5 percentage points for junior lien loans.
In terms of the disposition of applications for home-purchase loans in 2011, black and Hispanic white applicants experienced higher denial rates than non-Hispanic white applicants. The denial rate for Asian applicants is virtually the same as the corresponding denial rate for non-Hispanic white applicants. These relationships are similar to those found in earlier years, the FFIEC said.
