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Strategies & Market Trends : The Epic American Credit and Bond Bubble Laboratory -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Ramsey Su who wrote (68375)	8/16/2006 11:47:22 AM
From: ild	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 110194

What change do you see in their numbers?

To: Ramsey Su who wrote (68375)	8/16/2006 11:49:09 AM
From: ild	Respond to of 110194

Option ARMs Remain Popular In Spite of Risks By RUTH SIMON August 15, 2006; Page A2 online.wsj.com Option ARMs accounted for 12.3% of mortgage originations through May, up from 8.4% in all of 2005, according to a new study by LoanPerformance, a unit of First American Corp. The study looked at loans sold to investors that buy mortgage-backed securities. (The data exclude loans sold to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, two large mortgage-finance companies whose share of the overall market has been shrinking.) ... Meanwhile, some big lenders may be beginning to push option ARMs less aggressively. Countrywide Financial Corp. says its option-ARM volume was down 42% in July over the same month last year, compared with a 19% decrease in overall loan volume. Downey Financial Corp. said in its second-quarter earnings release that its loan volume had suffered because of the company's decision to raise the minimum payment on its option ARMs. ... Despite their downsides, option ARMs have been particularly popular with borrowers who are refinancing. They accounted for roughly 17% of refinance transactions nationwide through May, according to the LoanPerformance analysis, and nearly 37% of refinances in California.