Mortgage Business Increases, Could Continue Higher

DALLAS — (Aug. 9, 2010) /PRNewswire/ Residential mortgage originations improved from the first quarter, and early signs indicate the positive trend is continuing in the current period, according to the Second Quarter 2010 Mortgage Lender Ranking from Mortgage Daily. But FHA and reverse mortgage business was softer, and a top-ten originator has been replaced.

U.S. lenders originated 6.50 percent more in residential loans during the second quarter than in the first quarter, based on an analysis of origination data by MortgageDaily.com. But compared to a year earlier, volume was down 37.88 percent.

The volume of FHA originations was down from both the first quarter and the second-quarter 2009.

Second-quarter FHA endorsements were 401,981 loans for $71.6 billion. FHA endorsed 422,568 loans for $77.9 billion in the prior quarter and 519,567 loans for $98.1 billion during the same period last year.

Helping to drag down overall FHA business were home-equity conversion mortgages. Reverse mortgage endorsements declined to 15,369 HECMs for a maximum claim amount of $3.9 billion from the first quarter’s 21,676 loans for $5.9 billion and the second-quarter 2009’s 28,689 endorsements for $8.1 billion.

Wells Fargo & Co. maintained its grip on the No. 1 spot with $81.5 billion in total second-quarter production.

Flagstar Bancorp Inc. moved past Quicken Loans Inc. to rank ninth. BB&T Corp’s brief first-quarter appearance on the top-10 list was short-lived, with MetLife Home Loans taking its place. Quicken, which only reports retail volume, shared the No. 10 spot with MetLife.

“Recent data indicate loan pipelines have strengthened, suggesting third-quarter originations will come in even stronger,” Mortgage Daily Publisher Sam Garcia said. “Also, many borrowers might see a psychological threshold being broken as fixed rates teeter below 4 percent — potentially fueling demand for more refinance activity.”