Total reverse mortgage endorsements dipped by 12.0% from June to July 2017, with a larger drop for retail than wholesale, according to the most recent data from Reverse Market Insight.
Reverse mortgage originators — including both Federal Housing Administration-approved lenders and their non-FHA counterparts — turned in 4,253 endorsements in July, a dip of 582 loans from June. Retail endorsements fell 13.6%, as compared to a 10.4% slip on the wholesale side.
Of the top 10 lenders, Finance of America Reverse was the only one to post a gain between June and July, coming in with a 4% increase during that span. The Queens-based Quontic Bank, which launched a call center last year in an attempt to expand, saw a 79.3% month-over-month jump to finish in 12th place for July.
The 12.0% figure more or less matches the Dana Point, Calif.-based research firm’s previous analysis of only FHA-approved lenders, which showed a 12.1% dip between the two months. Reverse Market Insight generally releases the two reports about a month apart.
August, meanwhile, revealed a rebound for the FHA-only report, as RMD reported last week: Endorsements among that set rose 15.8% in August, breaking a string of down months that began in April.
The complete list has also been in the red since a white-hot March that saw 5,355 endorsements, though July represented the steepest drop of any month since totals fell 14.6% between August and September 2016.
Still, many industry experts are predicting a blockbuster September as consumers rush to secure loans before principal limit factor restrictions and changed mortgage insurance premium rates, with some counselors reporting packed schedules.
Read RMI’s full report here.
Written by Alex Spanko
