The number of residential loans that were refinanced through the Home Affordable Refinance Program turned higher for the first time in five months.
Combined refinances of residential loans backed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac worked out to 143,332 transactions for the month of September.
Refinancings slowed from a month prior, when 154,059 Fannie and Freddie mortgages were refinanced, and have been lower each month since June.
The findings were based on an analysis of quarterly refinance data provided by the two companies’ regulator and conservator, the Federal Housing Finance Agency.
In the same month last year, 138,443 of the secondary lenders’ loans were refinanced.
At Washington-based Fannie, 86,726 mortgages were refinanced, off from 89,181 in August.
Fannie volume has been down each month since June, when the number was 106,289.
Refinances of McLean, Virginia-based Freddie’s loans came in at 56,606 for September, down for the second month in a row from 64,878 during August.
While Fannie’s refinances have declined
18 percent since June — Freddie’s refinances have plummeted 39 percent.
GSE refinances completed through HARP amounted to 9,061 loans during the most-recent month, climbing from 7,496 transactions a month earlier.
The last time that there was a month-over-month gain in HARP activity was in April.
Still, HARP originations were well short of the 14,399 refinances a year earlier.
