The boom in mortgage origination activity in the fourth quarter of 2011 carried mortgage banking profits to their highest level in nearly two years, according to a new Inside Mortgage Trends analysis of earnings reports from 22 companies. The group, which includes all the top originators and servicers, reported a combined $5.10 billion in mortgage banking income during the fourth quarter of 2011. That was up 20.0 percent from the previous three-month period and represented the most profitable quarter for the group since the first quarter of 2010. On a full-year basis, the results don’t...(Includes one data chart)