Reverse mortgage volume saw a 7% uptick in July, with 5,756 loans total under the Home Equity Conversion Mortgage program. The total compares with a “dismal” month for volume in July 2012, which tallied 3,868 loans, according to Reverse Market Insight.
The lender landscape, too, saw a shift, with Security One/RMS taking the top position for its trailing 12-month total and AAG showing a volume spike to 914 loans during the month. Liberty Reverse closed more loans in July than Security One/RMS with a 12-month total that falls short of the top lender spot by less than 5%.
The AAG volume surge places its 12-month total in in the top 3 lenders, outpacing One Reverse Mortgage.
Several factors have weighed on the recent volume trends, RMI writes, including a shift away from the fixed rate standard product that went into effect April 1.
“Recent application volume trends after the April 1st moratorium on HECM Standard fixed rate applications have been less comforting, but there are very easy year over year comparisons through December to keep growth figures looking better than they otherwise would,” RMI writes.
Geographically, most areas were up in July, RMI reports, with the strongest growth pictures shown in Phoenix, Tucson and Las Vegas.
Written by Elizabeth Ecker
