The Mortgage Bankers Association is projecting $1.19 trillion in residential mortgage originations during 2015, which would represent a 7% increase from $1.11 trillion in 2014. Cooked into that number for 2015 are purchase originations increasing by 15% to $731 billion in 2015, up from $635 billion in 2014, and refinance originations decreasing by 3%, to $457 billion from $471 billion in 2014.
“We are projecting that home purchase originations will increase in 2015 as the U.S. economy continues on its current path of stronger growth, job gains and declining unemployment,” says Michael Fratantoni, MBA’s chief economist and senior vice president for research and industry technology, in a press release. “We are forecasting that strong job growth, coupled with still low mortgage rates, should translate to an increase in home sales and purchase originations.” These trends should certainly be evident here in south Louisiana with our local economies booming and prospects for job growth solid. In general, good news for the residential real estate market.
(Brian Andrews is assistant director of the Real Estate Research Institute at LSU’s E.J. Ourso College of Business. His private practice is Andrews Commercial Real Estate Services, and he can be reached at brian.andrews@acresllc.com.)
