Originations down as refinance loans slump

Residential refinance loans tumbled in the fourth quarter of 2017, dragging the overall level of originations down by a fifth.

ATTOM Data Solutions says that overall residential home loan originations dropped 19% year-over-year and 20% quarter-over-quarter with a total of 818,158 originations.

Purchase loans made up 791,637 of the total but that was down 22% from the previous quarter and down 1% from Q4, 2016. Refinance loans were down 17% quarter-over-quarter and down 34% year-over-year.

HELOCs were also down, by 25% from a 9-year high in Q3 2017 and down 7% year-over-year to a total 293,570.

"The falloff in refinance originations continued for the third straight quarter, but purchase originations held steady compared to a year ago despite ballooning down payment amounts that make it more difficult for first-time homebuyers to compete — as evidenced by the three-year low in the share of FHA buyers," said Daren Blomquist, senior vice president at ATTOM Data Solutions.

He added that a 12% rise in construction loans in the quarter (29,357) shows that – even taking rebuilding in Texas and Florida following the hurricanes -  more homeowners are choosing to stay in their existing homes and remodel as mortgage rates rise.

The share of FHAs in the quarter was down to a 3-year low of 12% of all loans originated. That compares to 12.9% in Q3 2017 and 12.3% in Q4 2016.

Top loan originators for 2017

The table below shows the top 16 mortgage originators in 2017 based on dollar volume of loans. This includes all lenders with at least $10 billion in total loan origination volume for the year.