Mortgage credit availability increased 0.8% in November compared with October to reach a score of 182.4 on the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Mortgage Credit Availability Index (MCAI).
A decrease in the MCAI indicates that lending standards are tightening, while increases are indicative of loosening credit. The index was benchmarked to 100 in March 2012.
Mortgage credit availability for jumbo loans saw the greatest increase in November, up 3.8%, compared with the previous month.
Mortgage credit availability for conventional loans was up 2.8%, while credit availability for conforming loans was up 1.8%.
Mortgage credit availability for government loans decreased 0.7%, compared with October.
“Mortgage credit availability increased in November, driven by a net increase in investor offerings,” says Lynn Fisher, vice president of research and economics for the MBA, in a statement. “While the number of offerings for government-backed programs (FHA/VA/USDA) declined modestly, conventional offerings increased more strongly over the month among both jumbo and conforming programs.”