A line to loans

Residential loans nationwide have fallen to the lowest level since the 2014 first quarter, according to a RealtyTrac report.

A little more than 1.4 million loans were written on residential properties with one to four units in the first quarter. That's down 12% from the last quarter of 2015, the data firm reports, and 8% from the 2015 first quarter.

The drop was driven by a 20% year-over-year decrease in refinance originations. On the flip side, purchase originations increased 3% from a year ago and home equity line of credit originations increased 10% from a year ago, the report shows.

“The purchase loan market continued the pattern of slow-and-steady growth that it has been following the past two years,” says RealtyTrac Senior Vice President Daren Blomquist in the statement, “and HELOC originations increased on a year-over-year basis for the 16th consecutive quarter, showing that borrowers are regaining both home value and the confidence needed to increasingly leverage their home equity.”