The Federal Reserve released its survey of senior loan officers (SLOOS) earlier this week. On its face, the survey suggests a modest loosening of credit for prime and non-traditional lending. However, the picture is a little more mixed for those … [Read more...]
Basel III Down: The Specter of Regulation Eases
Yesterday marked an important turning point for housing finance. The Federal Reserve voted on a final Basel III rule that is significantly friendlier to residential housing finance than the earlier proposal. While the FDIC and OCC must still vote … [Read more...]
Mortgage Availability: Excessively Tight Credit Conditions
Recently released government data for 2011 from the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) shows just how tight mortgage credit has been. Incomes of prospective purchasers have increased since 2004, but the loan to income ratio has declined. The median … [Read more...]
Credit Conditions Continue to be Tight
Each month, the National Association of REALTORS® obtains up-to-date and on-the-ground incisive comments from REALTORS® who participate in the REALTORS® Confidence Index (RCI) survey. The RCI survey tracks expectations about overall market … [Read more...]
Lenders Reluctant to Issue FHA Loans
REALTORS® have been aware of tight lending conditions for years. Data on average FICO scores, debt-to-income ratios and downpayments support this conclusion. However, a recent survey conducted by the Federal Reserve sheds more light on which … [Read more...]
Credit Unions Do More Lending
Commercial real estate loans are very difficult to obtain. The lack of government backing (outside of multifamily mortgages) and a higher capital charge on office, retail, industrial, and other commercial real estate-related mortgages have severely … [Read more...]
