Despite a widespread push to encourage “safe” fixed-rate mortgage lending in 2008, a surprising number of major lenders continued to pump out quite a bit of adjustable-rate mortgages. According to new numbers compiled by Inside Mortgage Finance, Chase was the largest ARM lender in the first three quarters of 2008 with $36.8 billion in volume and a hefty 37 percent market share. ARMs accounted for 23 percent of Chase’s total mortgage originations during the nine-month period.
Other major lenders with heavy ARM lending included Bank of America (20 percent) and PHH Mortgage (29 percent). Two lenders, ING Bank and Astoria Federal, both reported ARMs accounted for more than 90 percent of their mortgage business last year. But most of 2008’s ARM lending appeared to come in the first three quarters of the year. Preliminary fourth quarter data show that ARMs accounted for only about 3 percent of Fannie Mae’s and Freddie Mac’s business and even less for FHA.
Posted by imfpubs 
