Mortgage Originations Hit an All-Time High in Q4

The coronavirus pandemic isn't having a deleterious effect on the U.S. mortgage market. In fact, it's quite the opposite -- research on household debt published by the New York Federal Reserve on Wednesday reveals that mortgage originations reached a record high in Q4, rising to $1.2 trillion during the quarter.

As the New York Fed pointed out, this exceeded in nominal terms the figure recorded in Q3 2003, the height of the so-called "refinance boom" of the early 2000s. Then, as now, comparatively low interest rates fueled sharp rises in refinancing for existing mortgage holders. Refinanced mortgages are included in the tallying of originations.

Image source: Getty Images.

Continue reading

Source Fool.com