An increase the number of quarterly refinances was more than offset by a decline in purchase-money and home-secured credit line volume.
From July 1, 2016, through Sept. 30, U.S. home lenders originated 1,919,180 residential loans.
The dollar volume worked out to $502 billion.
Based on the number of home loans that were closed, mortgage production declined 2 percent compared to the second quarter of this year.
But volume inched up less than a percent from the third quarter of last year.
The statistics were reported Thursday by ATTOM Data Solutions based on data collected from more than 950 counties that reportedly account for more than 80 percent of the U.S. population.
The dollar volume of loan production rose 8 percent from a year earlier.
Refinances accounted for 876,633 of third-quarter 2016 originations, up 7 percent from three months earlier and 16 percent stronger than a year earlier. Refinance share widened to 45.7 percent from 42.1 percent and was also fatter than 39.5 percent in the same three-month period in 2015.
Another 743,880 of the latest period’s activity were for purchase financing. Purchase-money lending fell 8 percent from the second quarter and 11 percent from the third-quarter 2015.
Home-equity lines of credit originated in the third-quarter 2016 totaled 298,667. HELOC production fell 7 percent from the previous quarter and 6 percent from a year previous.
Loans insured by the Federal Housing Administration accounted for
16.4 percent of total originations — the lowest share since the first-quarter 2015. FHA share thinned from 17.6 percent in the second quarter and 19.8 percent in the third quarter of last year.
The share of mortgages guaranteed by the Department of Veterans Affairs widened to 8.8 percent from 8.6 percent and was also greater than 7.1 percent in the same period last year.
VA share was greater than in any quarter since ATTOM began tracking the data in the first-quarter 2006.
