On December 13, the CFPB published a report based on HMDA data collected from financial institutions, highlighting trends and changes in 2023 residential mortgage lending. Based on the HMDA data, the CFPB observed a decline in both total mortgage loan applications and originations across all loan types for 2023, with applications dropping by 30.3 percent and originations dropping by 32.2 percent. Further, the report found that originations for refinance loans for single-family homes dropped by 64.2 percent, while originations for home purchase loans dropped by 21.3 percent from 2022. The CFPB attributed the decline in applications and originations to rising interest rates, which the report noted rose further in 2023; rates increased from about 6 percent in January 2023 to about 7 percent in December 2023.
The report also examined demographic disparities in mortgage outcomes. The CFPB’s report stated that Black and Hispanic white borrowers faced higher denial rates and experienced steeper increases in median total loan costs compared to non-Hispanic white and Asian borrowers, across loan types. Additionally, the report noted that non-depository institutions, particularly independent mortgage companies, continued to originate an increasing portion of home purchase and refinance loans.
