Mortgage credit availability decreased in January, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Mortgage Credit Availability Index (MCAI).
The MCAI fell 0.4% compared with December to reach an index score of 123.8.
Credit for conforming loans saw the greatest tightening (down 1.5%), followed by government loans (down 0.8%). Credit for conventional loans was basically at the same level, while credit for jumbo loans increased 0.2% compared with December.
In a release, Lynn Fisher, vice president of research and economics for the MBA, says the decrease was “driven by a decline in some Federal Housing Administration and conventional offerings as compared to the previous month. These declines in the MCAI were only partially offset by loosening among adjustable-rate mortgage and jumbo lending programs.”