Mortgage Levels Fall for the First Time in 2021

For the first-time in 2021, total mortgages and volume fell quarter-over-quarter, according to the latest data from ATTOM Data Solutions…(ATTOM)

• Total Loans: 3.59 million mortgages secured by residential property were originated in Q3 2021 in the United States. This was down 8% from Q2 but was up 3% from Q3 of 2020.

• Loan Volume: Lenders issued $1.15 trillion worth of mortgages in Q3 2021. This was down 6% quarter-over-quarter but was up 11% from Q3 2020.

Not surprisingly, refinances saw the biggest drop in the third quarter with 1.99 million home loans rolled over into new mortgages. This was down 13% from the Q2 and was a 3% drop from Q3 2020.

• NOTE: The dollar volume of refinance loans were down 10% quarter-over-quarter but was still up 1% year-over-year I’m guessing thanks to double-digit price appreciation.

Despite strong demand, purchase loans also declined in the third quarter with lenders issuing 1.36 million mortgages to buyers. This is down 2% quarter-over-quarter but is 17% compared to Q3 2020.

• NOTE: The dollar value of loans taken out to buy property dipped1% to $482.6 billion which is a whopping 30% higher when compared to Q3 2020.

Todd Teta, chief product officer at ATTOM, said its still not known what this drop off means for the housing market…

• “It’s still too early to say if the trends point to major shifts in lending patterns or the broader housing market boom. But the drop-off is significant, especially for home buying, which could suggest an impending housing market slowdown. We will be watching the lending trends extra closely in the coming months.”