By Alex Roha | HousingWire
Mortgage credit is still the tightest it has been in more than six years, but an unwavering February may be the calm before the purchase storm as lenders prepare for a revitalized economy, the Mortgage Bankers Association said in a report on Tuesday.
The group’s Mortgage Credit Availability Index remained unchanged at 124.6 last month, still hovering near levels previously seen in 2014. The index plunged from record highs seen in late 2019 after the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in the worst economic contraction since the Great Depression.
Measuring credit availability by loan type, the Conforming MCAI that tracks loans backed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac fell .7% while the Jumbo MCAI measuring high-balance loans rose .2%, and the Conventional MCAI that measures loans not backed by the government fell .3%.
