Originations hit 9-year high - Black Knight

A strong fourth quarter pushed 2016 mortgage originations to their highest level in years

Originations hit 9-year high - Black Knight
Last year proved to be the best year in overall mortgage originations in nine years, according to Black Knight Financial Services.

"A strong fourth quarter finish to the year pushed total 2016 origination volumes to the highest level seen in nine years," said Ben Graboske, data and analytics executive vice president at Black Knight. "We've now seen nine consecutive quarters of double-digit purchase origination growth, and growth overall in the purchase market in 21 of the past 22 quarters.”

The fourth quarter saw nearly $300 billion in refinance originations — a 58% increase from the same period in 2015.

"The refinance market topped $1 trillion in 2016 as well, driven by a year of historically low rates,” Graboske said. “In fact, in the last quarter of 2016, refinance origination volumes were up 58 percent over 2015 and were the highest of any quarter since Q2 2013.”

Purchase originations hit $1.1 trillion in 2016 — the highest level since 2006, but still 28% lower than 2005’s peak volume.


Related stories:
Morning Briefing: Last year was best for mortgage originations since 2007
MBA appoints Quicken Loans, Black Knight execs to MISMO board