The decline in retail origination at banks and thrifts came even as overall originations increased slightly from the third to the fourth quarter. (Includes two data tables.)

Better is touting investments in artificial intelligence to help slash costs tied to originating refis. The lender is also building a distributed retail operation to increase production of purchase mortgages.

The retail channel gained market share in agency deliveries as refinance deliveries increased sharply during the fourth quarter of 2024. Underwriting standards tightened and loan sizes rose. (Includes two data tables.)

The correspondent channel’s share of originations increased for both conventional-conforming loans and nonconforming mortgages in the third quarter, according to a survey of lenders. Meanwhile, brokers gained share in the government-insured market. (Includes two data tables.)

Sales of mortgages by banks increased by 20.5% in the third quarter even as the top bank reduced its sales. Eight of the 10 top banks boosted their sales from the second quarter. (Includes two data tables.)

Federal Reserve researchers found that pandemic-era interest rates reduced mobility by 44%, as many homeowners are reluctant to let go of their low interest rates.

While retail continued to be the top channel in securitizations of conforming loans, correspondents gained 294 basis points of market share in the third quarter.

The retail share of conventional-conforming production rose by more than three percentage points while government and nonconforming lenders turned toward correspondents. (Includes two data tables.)

Banks and thrifts reported $44.54 billion in retail mortgage production in the second quarter, making it the strongest three-month period for bank retail lending since the third quarter of 2022. (Includes two data tables.)

The retail channel’s share of agency MBS production slipped from 47.4% in the first quarter to 45.6% in the second quarter. The correspondent and broker channels gained share. (Includes two data tables.)