By Bill Lyons | Updated on February 5, 2024
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    The share of mortgage closings that were for home purchases increased in April according to the latest data from mortgage software firm Ellie Mae.

    Purchase money loans made up 65% of total loans with refinances down to 35%. Last year at this time purchases made up 59% of mortgage originations while refinances took a 40% share.

    “We also saw the time to close loans shrink for the third consecutive month to 42 days, a substantial decrease from the 2017 high of 51 days in January. Ellie Mae customers are realizing efficiencies as they embrace technology to improve the homebuying experience,” said Jonathan Corr, president and CEO of Ellie Mae.

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    “Here at Griffin Funding we also saw a decrease in time to close due to our client’s using our digital mortgage platform” said Bill Lyons, president and CEO of Griffin Funding.

    The data shows that the rate for an average 30-year mortgage was 4.41% in April, up from 4.39% in March while ARM’s made up a higher proportion of new mortgage originations – 5.9% compared to 5.6% in March – reaching the highest share since November 2014.

    By loan type there was little change with conventional loans making up 63% of mortgage originations, FHAs 23% and VAs 10%, unchanged from March and little changed from April 2016.

    The average FICO score for closed first-lien loans was 722 with loan-to-value ratio of 80 and debt-to-income at 25/39.

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    Bill Lyons

    Bill Lyons is the Founder, CEO & President of Griffin Funding. Founded in 2013, Griffin Funding is a national boutique mortgage lender focusing on delivering 5-star service to its clients. Mr. Lyons has 23 years of experience in the mortgage business. Lyons is seen as an industry leader and expert in real estate finance. Lyons has been featured in Forbes, Inc., Wall Street Journal, HousingWire, and more. As a member of the Mortgage Bankers Association, Lyons is able to keep up with important changes in the industry to deliver the most value to Griffin's clients. Under Lyons' leadership, Griffin Funding has made the Inc. 5000 fastest-growing companies list five times in its 11 years in business.