January Mortgage Credit Availability Flat for 2nd Straight Month
Mortgage credit availability fell by just 0.1 percent in January and has held flat for the past two months, the Mortgage Bankers Association reported Thursday.
The MBA Mortgage Credit Availability Index fell by 0.1 percent to 103.2 in January. The Conventional MCAI decreased by 0.3 percent, while the Government MCAI remained unchanged. Of the component indices of the Conventional MCAI, the Jumbo MCAI decreased by 0.4 percent, and the Conforming MCAI remained unchanged.
“Mortgage credit availability was essentially unchanged in January and remained close to its lowest level since 2013,” said Joel Kan, MBA Vice President and Deputy Chief Economist. “Similar to December 2022, the availability of credit has been driven lower by declining originations and shrinking industry capacity as lenders have streamlined their operations to cope with lower volumes. Additionally, as mortgage rates declined over the past month, the share of adjustable-rate mortgages has fallen – consistent with a slight pullback in ARM offerings in this month’s results.”
However, Kan noted a revival in mortgage application activity over the past month. “Our forecast is for rates to continue to decline and housing activity – including home sales and new home construction – to gradually pick up as we approach the spring homebuying season,” he said. “These developments could potentially change the credit availability landscape in the months ahead.”
The MCAI analyzes data from ICE Mortgage Technology.A decline in the MCAI indicates that lending standards are tightening, while increases in the index are indicative of loosening credit. The index was benchmarked to 100 in March 2012.
About the Mortgage Credit Availability Index
The MCAI provides the only standardized quantitative index solely focused on mortgage credit.
The MCAI is calculated using several factors related to borrower eligibility (credit score, loan type, loan-to-value ratio, etc.). These metrics and underwriting criteria for more than 95 lenders/investors are combined by MBA using data made available via the AllRegs Market Clarity product and a proprietary formula derived by MBA to calculate the MCAI, a summary measure which indicates the availability of mortgage credit at a point in time. Base period and values for total index is March 31, 2012=100; Conventional March 31, 2012=73.5; Government March 31, 2012=183.5.
To learn more about the ICE Mortgage Technology, visit http://answers.allregs.com/MCAI-Market-Clarity. For more information on the Mortgage Credit Availability Index, including Methodology, Frequently Asked Questions and other helpful resources, visit www.mba.org/MortgageCredit or contact MBAResearch@mba.org.
