Mortgage credit availability increased slightly in June compared with May, rising 0.2% to a score of 181.0 on the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Mortgage Credit Availability Index (MCAI).
When the index decreases, that means lending standards are tightening. When it increases, that means credit is loosening. The index was benchmarked to 100 in March 2012.
Credit availability for conventional loans increased 5.5% while credit availability for government loans decreased 3.9%.
Credit availability for jumbo loans increased by 9.3% while credit for conforming loans increased by 1.0%.
“Mortgage credit loosened slightly, led mainly by an increase in the jumbo MCAI which represented fierce competition among lenders for prime jumbo borrowers,” says Mike Fratantoni, chief economist and senior vice president of research and industry technology for the MBA, in a statement. “However, this loosening was almost completely offset by a decline in credit for government loan programs. The government MCAI has tightened in recent months, driven largely by policy actions to reduce churning in the Veterans Administration’s Interest Rate Reduction Refinance Loan program.”
The MCAI analyzes data from Ellie Mae’s AllRegs Market Clarity business information tool.
