Figure 14. Level of refinancings of residential mortgages, 1990-2009.
Data are plotted as a curve with the value for January 26, 1990, equal to 1. The series stays at about that level through the middle of 1991, after which it moves in a range of between about 1 and 15 through the end of 1997. It moves up to reach almost 30 in late 1998 and then falls to reach less than 4 in late 1999, where it roughly remains through December 2000. It then enters a more volatile period in which it rises to more than 40 in late 2001, falls to about 10 by early 2002, and rises to reach about 57 in late 2002, where it roughly stays until early 2003, after which it rises to a high of about 95 in mid-2003. It then falls to about 20 in late 2003. After a brief climb to about 40 in early 2004, it drops back to about 20 in 2005 and 15 in the first half of 2006 before moving back up to 20 at the end of 2006. It remains at that level through 2007, with a value of about 25 in December 2007. The series climbs to almost 36 in early February 2008, but falls to about 15 by late August 2008, reverses and climbs to about 48 by early January 2009, declines in February 2009 to about 25, and rises to almost 50 by mid-April 2009.
NOTE: The data, which are weekly and extend through April 17, 2009, are 4-week moving averages. Residential mortgages include both first and second liens secured by one- to four-family residential properties.
SOURCE: Mortgage Bankers Association.
