Mortgage Credit Availability Tightens in December

The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) on Tuesday (1-9-24) released its Mortgage Credit Availability Index (MCAI) report for December. According to MCAI, which analyzes data from the ICE Mortgage Technology, mortgage credit availability tightened in December.

The MCAI decreased by 4.6% to a reading of 92.1 in December, the second consecutive month of declining mortgage availability. The MBA notes that a decline in the MCAI indicates that lending standards are tightening, while increases in the index are indicative of loosening credit. The index was benchmarked to 100 in March 2012.

The Conventional MCAI fell 3.2%, while the Government MCAI decreased by 5.9%. Of the component indices the Conventional MCAI, the Jumbo MCAI declined 1.7%, and the Conforming MCAI fell 5.9%.

Providing additional background and analysis to the MCAI report, MBA Vice President and Deputy Chief Economist Joel Kan said:

“Credit availability declined in December to the lowest level since 2012, as ongoing industry consolidation is resulting in more loan programs being removed from the marketplace. Both conventional and government indices experienced decreases. The decrease in the government index was driven by lower investor demand for renovation loans and streamline refinance loans.”