California better watch out, HECM volume in Texas continues to grow and in November it overtook Florida as the second largest state in terms of reverse mortgage volume according to Reverse Market Insight.
Through November 2010, overall endorsements are still down 16.6% in the Lone Star State but it’s better than anywhere else in the top 10. In California, the state with the most reverse mortgages endorsed, saw volume fall 40% from last year. Endorsements in Florida were even worse, down 54.4% in 2010.
According to RMI, Florida and California have similar patterns of growth with a boom and then a bust, which isn’t a huge surprise considering both states home prices were hit hard during the housing downturn. “Texas on the other hand, exhibits much more of the ’slow and steady wins the race’ pattern and has overtaken Florida as the state continues to see volume declines,” said John Lunde, President of RMI.
A report from the Federal Reserve of New York found that average home prices from 2007 to 2009 dropped by 39% in California and 38% in Florida, while prices increased by 1% in Texas.
If you need any proof that it has been a difficult year for reverse mortgage lenders, take a look at the endorsement rankings by geographic area. The only positive trend comes from Philadelphia, PA. According to RMI, Philadelphia county is the 8th largest country for reverse mortgages, with endorsement volume up 8.4% through November 2010. All other counties listen in the top 10 saw endorsements fall.
To view a copy of the report, see here.
