That Light at the End of the Tunnel--It's Technology (Executive Essay) (Industry Overview‪)‬

No news is good news. But if you're looking for "no news" in this industry, you may be looking in the wrong place. Unfortunately, the news doesn't seem to stop coming, and very little of it is positive for the mortgage industry. Last December, the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) published profit results from its Quarterly Mortgage Bankers Performance Report for the third quarter of 2009. The current projection anticipates mortgage originations decreasing 38 percent from $2.1 trillion in 2009 to $1.3 trillion in 2010. Current forecasts show that while purchase originations should increase by 4.6 percent in 2010, a sharp decline in refinance originations--from $1.372 trillion to $502 billion--is projected. Add to this a 33.6 percent reduction in profit margins for independent mortgage bankers, and with 50 percent and 22 per cent increases in net-to-cost and production operating expenses, respectively, the outlook appears less than favorable.