Global Markets 

Analysis Report

A MONTHLY PUBLICATION OF GINNIE MAE’S 

OFFICE OF CAPITAL MARKETS

PREPARED FOR GINNIE MAE 

BY STATE STREET GLOBAL ADVISORS 

URBAN INSTITUTE, HOUSING FINANCE POLICY CENTER
Relative Attractiveness of US Fixed Income and Ginnie Mae MBS

Barclays US Aggregate and Global Indices 5

Global 10-year treasury yields 6

Ginnie Mae yields and yield spreads—USD, JPY, Euro 7-9

Ginnie Mae yield spreads - Intermediate Credit 10

MBS yield per duration 11

Total return and Sharpe Ratios 12 

State of the US Housing Market 

Serious delinquency rates 13

National HPI, HPI by state 13-14 

Ginnie Mae Agency issuance and Agency outstanding by state 15

FHA and VA Outstanding Loan Count Maps 16

Size and value of the US Residential housing and mortgage markets 17

Outstanding Agency MBS 18

Origination volume over time 19

US Agency Market, Originations

Agency Gross and Net Issuance 20-22 

Purchase versus refi: Refi Issuance Breakdown 23 

Credit Box 

First time home buyer share—purchase only loans 24-25

FICO score distribution 26

Credit box at a glance (FICO, LTV, DTI) 27-29

Historical credit box (FICO, LTV,DTI) 30-31

Cumulative Default Rates: FHA and VA 32

High LTV credit box 33-34

Ginnie Mae Nonbank Originators

Nonbank originator share (All, Purchase, Refi) 35-36

Bank vs. nonbank originators historical credit box, Ginnie Mae vs. GSE (FICO, LTV, DTI) 37-40

Holders of Ginnie Mae Mortgage Servicing Rights 

Top Holders of Ginnie Mae MSR 41-42

Non-bank Holders of Ginnie Mae MSR 42

Prepayments 

Aggregate 43

Select coupon/origination year cohorts 44-46

Other Ginnie Mae Programs

HMBS 47

Multifamily 48

Market Conditions-Agency MBS

Average daily trading volume and turnover by sector 49

Dealer net positions, repo volume 50

MBS Ownership

Ownership breakdown of total agency debt 51

MBS share of total agency debt and commercial bank ownership of MBS 52

Bank and Thrift Residential MBS Holdings 53

Foreign ownership of MBS 54-55

Fed Ownership of MBS 56

CONTENTS
HIGHLIGHTS

Introduction

As the COVID-19 crisis has intensified, over 36 million Americans have lost their jobs and the US 

unemployment rate now stands at close to 15 percent. Although the Federal mortgage agencies, such as 

Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD,) Ginnie Mae, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac 

intervened swiftly to minimize financial disruption, millions of impacted households have already fallen 

behind on their mortgage payment. In addition, under the recently enacted CARES Act, borrowers with 

federal mortgages have the right to obtain payment forbearance up to 12 months provided they are impacted 

by COVID-19. Newly available delinquency data allow us to get an early read into the impact of COVID-19 on 

Ginnie Mae mortgage delinquencies.

Figure 1: Percentage of loans 30 days or more delinquent (D30+)

Source: Urban Institute calculations based on eMBS data. Data as of April 2020

Figure 1 above shows the monthly share of FHA and VA loans pooled in Ginnie Mae MBS that were 30 days or 

more delinquent. During the 2-year period preceding COVID-19, this share generally fluctuated between 5.5 

and 6.5 percent for all loans backed by Ginnie Mae. In April 2020, delinquency rate almost doubled to over 10 

percent. FHA mortgages account for $1.3 trillion, or 63 percent of the total $2 trillion in Ginnie Maeguaranteed unpaid principal balance outstanding. Given its focus on serving first-time homebuyers and lowand moderate-income households, FHA-insured loans experienced a much greater rise in delinquencies, from 

around 7 percent in March to over 12 percent in April. 

The nationwide reach of the COVID-19 pandemic suggests that the spike in delinquencies would be seen 

across states. Figure 2 shows FHA’s and VA’s D30+ rate as of April 2020 in 5 states with the largest number of 

Ginnie loans outstanding – i.e. CA, FL, TX, VA and GA. Together, these states account for 33 percent of all 

Ginnie Mae loans, thus wielding an outsized influence on the overall credit performance of Ginnie Mae loans.

0%

2%

4%

6%

8%

10%

12%

14%

Apr-18

May-18

Jun-18

Jul-18

Aug-18

Sep-18

Oct-18

Nov-18

Dec-18

Jan-19

Feb-19

Mar-19

Apr-19

May-19

Jun-19

Jul-19

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-19

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-20

Feb-20

Mar-20

Apr-20

May-20

Ginnie Mae FHA VA
Figure 2: Percentage of loans 30 days or more delinquent (D30+) in April 2020, by State

Source: Urban Institute calculations based on eMBS data. Data as of April 2020

In the FHA space, as of April end, FL had the highest D30+ rate (14.4 percent) among these five 

states, followed by GA (14.1%,) TX and CA (both 12.9%,) and VA (11.2%.) In each of these states, 

the D30+ rate was about 1.5 to 2 times the level in March, reflecting the sweeping magnitude of 

this crisis.

The D30+ rate for VA-guaranteed loans was much lower than FHA loans before the COVID 

crisis, but it also increased substantially in April. At 7.5 percent, GA’s D30+ rate was the highest 

among the five states, followed by TX (6.9%,) FL (6.2%,) CA (6.1%,) and VA (5.0%.) These 

delinquency numbers reflect not just the scale of household distress caused by the crisis, but also 

the widespread and streamlined availability of COVID-19 federal forbearance.

Under the CARES Act, borrowers have the right to receive up to a total of 12-month forbearance 

by stating their hardship to the servicer. Borrowers also may elect to exit forbearance at any 

time. In the coming months, as the US economy gradually opens, it will be critical to examine 

what share of currently delinquent borrowers will resume making their monthly payments. 

Ginnie Mae has begun the process of collecting supplemental loan level data related to 

forbearance which will be shared in monthly disclosures.

Highlights this month:

• In the first quarter of 2020, first lien originations totaled $670 billion, up from the Q1 2019 volume of 

$355 billion (page 19).

• Median FICO score for agency originations increased from 741 in Feb to 745 in March 2020, driven by 

increases in GSE FICOs even as Ginnie Mae median FICO remained unchanged (page 37).

• In April 2020, aggregate prepayments for Fannie and Freddie MBS exceeded those for Ginnie Mae II 

securities for the first time since 2013 (page 43).

• Agency MBS held by foreign investors increased in Jan 2020, driven by growth in both private and 

official holdings (page 54).

HIGHLIGHTS

12.90%

14.40%

12.90%

11.20%

14.10%

6.10% 6.20% 6.90%

5.00%

7.50%

0%

2%

4%

6%

8%

10%

12%

14%

16%

CA FL TX VA GA

FHA VA
Relative Attractiveness of US Fixed 

Income and Ginnie Mae MBS

US MBS (Ginnie Mae, Fannie Mae, and Freddie Mac) comprise 27 percent of the Barclays US Aggregate Index- less 

than either the US Treasury share (41 percent) or the US Credit share (29 percent). Fannie Mae 30-year MBS 

accounts for 10 percent of the overall index, the largest MBS component, while Ginnie Mae 30-year MBS and Freddie 

Mac 30-year MBS both comprise 7 of the market. Mortgages with terms of 15 and 20 years comprise the remaining 

balance (3 percent) of the Barclays US Aggregate Index. US securities are the single largest contributor to the 

Barclays Global Aggregate, accounting for 39 percent of the global total. US MBS comprises 11 percent of the global

aggregate.

41%

1%

29%

7%

10%

7%

3%

3%

Barclays US 

Aggregate Index

Treasury

Agency

Credit

GNMA MBS 30y

FNMA MBS 30y

FHLMC MBS 30y

15y and 20y MBS

ABS & CMBS

54%

7%

25%

11%

1%

2%

Global Treasury

Global Agency

Global Credit

US MBS

ABS & CMBS

Collateralised

(Pfandbrief)

5

1%

3% 1%

39%

29%

21%

1%

0.04% 2%

0%

Australia

Canada

Middle East

United States

Europe

Asia & Pacific Rim

Latin America

Africa

Supranational

Others

Sources: Bloomberg and State Street Global Advisors. Note: Data as of March 2020.

Note: Numbers in chart may not add to 100 percent due to rounding.

Barclays Global Aggregate Index by Country Barclays Global Aggregate Index by Sector

Sources: Bloomberg and State Street Global Advisors. 

Note: Data as of March 2020.

Sources: Bloomberg and State Street Global Advisors

Note: Data as of March 2020.
Relative Attractiveness of US Fixed 

Income and Ginnie Mae MBS

-2.0

-1.0

0.0

1.0

2.0

3.0

4.0

5.0

6.0

7.0

8.0

Apr-13 Oct-13 Apr-14 Oct-14 Apr-15 Oct-15 Apr-16 Oct-16 Apr-17 Oct-17 Apr-18 Oct-18 Apr-19 Oct-19 Apr-20

Yield (%)

Global 10-year Treasury Yields

6

US 10y UK 10y GER 10y ITA 10y JPY 10y

-2.0

-1.5

-1.0

-0.5

0.0

0.5

1.0

1.5

2.0

2.5

3.0

-2.0

-1.0

0.0

1.0

2.0

3.0

4.0

5.0

Apr-13 Apr-14 Apr-15 Apr-16 Apr-17 Apr-18 Apr-19 Apr-20

10yr US Treasury hedged yield, JPY

10y US hedged yield, JPY (left)

US 10y hedged yield advantage vs 10y JGB (right)

-2.0

-1.5

-1.0

-0.5

0.0

0.5

1.0

1.5

2.0

-2.0

-1.0

0.0

1.0

2.0

3.0

4.0

5.0

Apr-13 Apr-14 Apr-15 Apr-16 Apr-17 Apr-18 Apr-19 Apr-20

10yr US Treasury hedged yield, EUR

10y US hedged yield, EUR (left)

10y US hedge yield advantage vs 10y bund (right)

Sources: Bloomberg and State Street Global Advisors. 

Note: Data as of April 2020.

Sources: Bloomberg and State Street Global Advisors

Note: Data as of April 2020.

Sources: Bloomberg and State Street Global Advisors. Note: Data as of April 2020.

Government bond yields across the globe experienced significant volatility in the beginning of Q2 2020 in 

response to the economic impact of the COVID-19 shock. In April 2020, the yield on the 10-year treasury fell by 

3 bps to 0.64 percent. After exceeding the yield on the US 10-year treasury in March, the Italian 10-year note 

yield increased by another 24 basis points in April to 1.76 percent. The yield on the UK 10-year bond fell by 13 

bps to 0.23 percent, the Japanese 10-year government bond yield decreased by 5 bps to -0.03 percent, and the 

German 10-year yield was down by 12 bps to -0.59 percent in April. At the end of April, the hedged yield 

differential between the 10-year Treasury and the 10-year JGB stood at 0.07 bps, an increase of 95 bps since 

March 2020. The hedged yield differential between the 10-year Treasury and the 10-year Bund stood at 0.46 

bps, an increase of 71 bps since the end of March 2020.

Yield(%)

Yield(%)
Relative Attractiveness of US Fixed 

Income and Ginnie Mae MBS

0.0

0.2

0.4

0.6

0.8

1.0

1.2

1.4

1.6

1.8

0.0

0.5

1.0

1.5

2.0

2.5

3.0

3.5

4.0

4.5

Apr-18 Jul-18 Oct-18 Jan-19 Apr-19 Jul-19 Oct-19 Jan-20 Apr-20

G2SF CC yield & nominal spread, USD

7

G2SF CC yield, USD (left) G2SF CC yield nominal spread vs UST 5/10 blend (50%/50%) (right)

0.0

0.5

1.0

1.5

2.0

2.5

3.0

0.0

1.0

2.0

3.0

4.0

5.0

6.0

7.0

Apr-09 Apr-10 Apr-11 Apr-12 Apr-13 Apr-14 Apr-15 Apr-16 Apr-17 Apr-18 Apr-19 Apr-20

GNSF CC yield & nominal spread, USD

GNSF CC yield, USD (left) GNSF CC yield nominal spread vs UST 5/10 blend (50%/50%) (right)

Sources: Bloomberg and State Street Global Advisors. Note: Data as of April 2020.

Sources: Bloomberg and State Street Global Advisors. Note: Data as of April 2020.

Nominal yields fell in April 2020, with GNMA II yields declining 32 bps to 1.22% and GNMA I yields declining 

13 bps to 1.34% respectively. The spread between agency mortgages and U.S. Treasuries fell throughout the 

month as the Federal Reserve purchase of Agency MBS continued. At the end of April, current coupon Ginnie 

Mae securities outyield their Treasury counterparts (relative to the average of 5- and 10-year Treasury yields) 

by 72 bps on the G2SF and 84 bps on the GNSF, a decrease of 29 and 10 bps respectively since last month.

Yield(%) Yield(%)

Yield(%)

Yield(%)
Relative Attractiveness of US Fixed 

Income and Ginnie Mae MBS

-1.0

-0.5

0.0

0.5

1.0

1.5

2.0

2.5

-0.8

-0.6

-0.4

-0.2

0.0

0.2

0.4

0.6

0.8

1.0

1.2

1.4

Apr-18 Jul-18 Oct-18 Jan-19 Apr-19 Jul-19 Oct-19 Jan-20 Apr-20

G2SF CC yield & nominal spread, JPY

8

G2SF CC yield, JPY (left) G2SF CC yield nominal spread vs JGB 5/10 blend (50%/50%) (right)

Sources: Bloomberg and State Street Global Advisors. Note: Data as of April 2020.

Sources: Bloomberg and State Street Global Advisors. Note: Data as of April 2020.

If Ginnie Mae securities are hedged into Japanese Yen, they look favorable on a yield basis versus the JGB 5/10 

blend at the end of April. More precisely, hedged into Japanese yen, the G2SF and GNSF have a 72 and 83 bp

yield versus the JGB 5/10 blend. This represents a 66 and 85 bp widening for G2SF and GNSF, respectively, since 

the end of March 2020.

-1.0

0.0

1.0

2.0

3.0

4.0

5.0

6.0

-1.0

0.0

1.0

2.0

3.0

4.0

5.0

6.0

7.0

Apr-09 Apr-10 Apr-11 Apr-12 Apr-13 Apr-14 Apr-15 Apr-16 Apr-17 Apr-18 Apr-19 Apr-20

GNSF CC yield & nominal spread, JPY

GNSF CC yield, JPY (left) GNSF CC yield nominal spread vs JGB 5/10 blend (50%/50%) (right)

Yield(%) Yield(%)

Yield(%) Yield(%)
Relative Attractiveness of US Fixed 

Income and Ginnie Mae MBS

-0.4

-0.2

0.0

0.2

0.4

0.6

0.8

1.0

1.2

1.4

1.6

1.8

-0.8

-0.6

-0.4

-0.2

0.0

0.2

0.4

0.6

0.8

1.0

Apr-18 Jul-18 Oct-18 Jan-19 Apr-19 Jul-19 Oct-19 Jan-20 Apr-20

G2SF CC yield & nominal spread, EUR

9

G2SF CC yield, EUR (left) G2SF CC yield nominal spread vs GER 5/10 blend (50%/50%) (right)

-0.5

0.0

0.5

1.0

1.5

2.0

2.5

3.0

-1.0

0.0

1.0

2.0

3.0

4.0

5.0

6.0

7.0

Apr-09 Apr-10 Apr-11 Apr-12 Apr-13 Apr-14 Apr-15 Apr-16 Apr-17 Apr-18 Apr-19 Apr-20

GNSF CC yield & nominal spread, EUR

GNSF CC yield, EUR (left) GNSF CC yield nominal spread vs GER 5/10 blend (50%/50%) (right)

Sources: Bloomberg and State Street Global Advisors. Note: Data as of April 2020.

Sources: Bloomberg and State Street Global Advisors. Note: Data as of April 2020.

If Ginnie Mae securities are hedged into Euros, they look favorable on a yield basis versus the German 5/10 

Blend. The figures below show that at the end of April, the current coupon G2SF and GNSF hedged into euros 

have a 113 and 124 bp higher yield than the average of the German 5/10, respectively. This represents an 42 bp

increase for the G2SF and a 61 bp increase for the GNSF since the end of March 2020. 

Yield(%) Yield(%)

Yield(%) Yield(%)
Relative Attractiveness of US Fixed 

Income and Ginnie Mae MBS

0

50

100

150

200

250

300

Feb-16 Jul-16 Dec-16 May-17 Oct-17 Mar-18 Aug-18 Jan-19 Jun-19 Nov-19 Apr-20

Sources: State Street Global Advisors. Note: Data as of April 2020.

10

-50

0

50

100

150

200

250

300

350

400

Feb-16 Jul-16 Dec-16 May-17 Oct-17 Mar-18 Aug-18 Jan-19 Jun-19 Nov-19 Apr-20

U.S. Intermediate Credit - OAS US GNMA 30yr II - OAS

Sources: State Street Global Advisors. Note: Data as of April 2020.

Spread between Intermediate credit and 30-year GNMA MBS OAS

G2 30 MBS versus Intermediate Credit

After tightening steadily from early 2016 to Jan 2020, the spread between US Intermediate Credit and GNMA II 

30 year OAS skyrocketed in Feb 2020 in response to the COVID-19 panic. This was followed by substantial 

tightening over March and April. The OAS on intermediate credit partially recovered from its enormous widening 

early in the year, while the Ginnie Mae II 30-year fell to multi-year lows. Despite this drop, the spread between the 

two remains much elevated, ending April 2020 at 175 basis points in comparison to 21 basis points at the end of 

Jan, reflecting heightened investor concern about corporate credit risk.
Relative Attractiveness of US Fixed 

Income and Ginnie Mae MBS

Sources: Bloomberg and State Street Global Advisors. Note: Yields are in base currency ofsecurity and unhedged. 

Data as of April 2020.

US MBS yields are about the same or higher than most government securities with the same or longer durations. 

The only asset class with significantly more yields are the US and Pan-Euro high yield and credit indices. 

Duration, a measure of sensitivity to interest rate changes, does not fully capture the volatility of the high yield 

asset classes, as there is a large credit component, which has moved front and center in light of COVID-19.

Security Duration Yield

US 5y 4.9 0.36

US 10y 9.1 0.64

GNMA II 3.0% 4.4 2.09

GNMA II 3.5% 2.9 0.85

JPY 5y 4.9 -0.16

JPY 10y 9.9 -0.04

GER 5y 5.0 -0.77

GER 10y 9.8 -0.59

ITA 5y 4.7 1.13

ITA 10y 9.1 1.76

US credit 8.0 2.54

US credit >= A 7.9 1.92

US HY 4.2 8.05

Pan-Euro Corp 5.9 1.38

Pan-Euro HY 4.1 7.17

11

US 5y US 10y

G2 3.5%

G2 3.0%

JPY 5y

GER 10y

GER 5y

JPY 10y

ITA 5y

ITA 10y

US Credit

US Credit>=A

US HY

Pan-Euro 

Corp

Pan-Euro HY

-2.00

-1.00

0.00

1.00

2.00

3.00

4.00

5.00

6.00

7.00

8.00

9.00

0.0 2.0 4.0 6.0 8.0 10.0 12.0

Yield

Duration

Yield versus duration
Relative Attractiveness of US Fixed 

Income and Ginnie Mae MBS

Source: State Street

*A 2% max r

Average Return (Per Month)

Time Period US MBS 

Ginnie Mae US Treasury US Credit Corp Pan Euro Credit Corp US High Yield* Pan EuroHigh Yield*

1 year 0.61 1.13 0.83 0.09 -0.27 -0.38

3 year 0.32 0.48 0.47 0.13 0.18 0.05

5 year 0.24 0.32 0.39 0.13 0.31 0.16

10 year 0.27 0.32 0.44 0.35 0.50 0.49

* ssumes 2 capitalization ma per issue

*Assumes 2% capitali ati per issuer

Source: State Street

Average Excess Return (Per Month)

Time Period US MBS 

Ginnie Mae US Treasury US Credit Corp Pan Euro Credit Corp US High Yield* Pan EuroHigh Yield*

1 year 0.49 1.01 0.71 0.14 -0.40 -0.33

3 year 0.18 0.34 0.34 0.19 0.05 0.11

5 year 0.15 0.23 0.29 0.18 0.22 0.22

10 year 0.23 0.27 0.39 0.37 0.45 0.52

l zat on max

* ssu 2 o ax 

Source: State Street

Standard Deviation

Time Period US MBS 

Ginnie Mae US Treasury US Credit Corp Pan Euro Credit Corp

Cor

US High Yield* Pan Euro

High Yield*

12

1 year 0.52 1.53 2.94 2.74 3.84 4.67

3 year 0.67 1.21 1.86 1.62 2.41 2.77

5 year 0.61 1.13 1.62 1.46 2.22 2.38

10 year 0.66 1.07 1.44 1.39 2.03 2.03

As mes % capitalizati n ma per issuer

Sharpe Ratio

Time Period US MBS 

Ginnie Mae US Treasury US Credit Co p

Pan Euro 

Credit Corp US High Yield Pan EuroHigh Yield*

1 year 0.94 0.66 0.24 0.05 -0.10 -0.07

3 year 0.27 0.28 0.18 0.12 0.02 0.04

5 year 0.24 0.21 0.18 0.12 0.10 0.09

10 year 0.34 0.25 0.27 0.27 0.22 0.26

*Assumes 2% capitalization max per issuer on high yield indices

Sources: Barclays Indices, Bloomberg and State Street Global Advisors Note: Data as of April 2020.

The average return on the Ginnie Mae index over the past decade is less than other indices. However, the 

standard deviation of the Ginnie Mae index is the lowest of any sector, as it has the least price volatility over a 1, 

3, 5 and 10 year horizon. The result: The Sharpe Ratio, or excess return per unit of risk for the Ginnie Mae index is 

highest among all indices over a 1, 5 and 10-year horizon, and second only to the US Treasury Index over a 3-year 

horizon.
State of the US Housing Market

5.2%

6.2%

4.4%

-15%

-10%

-5%

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

Mar-01

Sep-01

Mar-02

Sep-02

Mar-03

Sep-03

Mar-04

Sep-04

Mar-05

Sep-05

Mar-06

Sep-06

Mar-07

Sep-07

Mar-08

Sep-08

Mar-09

Sep-09

Mar-10

Sep-10

Mar-11

Sep-11

Mar-12

Sep-12

Mar-13

Sep-13

Mar-14

Sep-14

Mar-15

Sep-15

Mar-16

Sep-16

Mar-17

Sep-17

Mar-18

Sep-18

Mar-19

Sep-19

Mar-20

Year-over-year growth rate

National Year-Over-Year HPI Growth

13

Bottom price tier Middle price tier Top price tier

Sources: Black Knight and Urban Institute. Note: Black Knight divides home prices in each region into quintiles; this figure shows the performance of the 

bottom, middle and top quintiles. Data as of March 2020.

0.66%

0.60%

3.29%

1.80%

0%

1%

2%

3%

4%

5%

6%

7%

8%

9%

10%

3Q062Q071Q084Q083Q092Q101Q114Q113Q122Q131Q144Q143Q152Q161Q174Q173Q182Q191Q20

Serious delinquency rates

Fannie Mae Freddie Mac FHA VA

Sources: Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, MBA Delinquency Survey and Urban Institute.

Note: Serious delinquency is defined as 90 days or more past due or in the foreclosure process. Data as of Q1 2020.

Serious Delinquency Rates: Single-Family Loans

Serious delinquency rates for single-family GSE loans, FHA loans and VA loans all decreased in Q1 2020. GSE 

delinquencies remain just above their 2006-2007 level, while FHA and VA delinquencies (which are higher than 

their GSE counterparts) are well below 2006-2007 levels. The bottom chart shows nationwide house prices for the 

bottom, middle and the top quintiles by price. House prices have risen most at the lower end of the market where 

Ginnie Mae plays a major role. Prices at the lower end of the market rose by 6.2 percent for 12 months ended March 

2020, much higher than the 4.4 percent for the top end of the market. Year-over-year price growth in March was 

lower than February for all price tiers.
State of the US Housing Market

bt,

ousehold

De

h

mortg

$9,833

Sources: Black Knight and Urban Institute. Note: 

rtgages,

HPI data as of February 2020. Negative sign indicates that state is above earlier peak. Peak refers to the month 

when HPI reached the highest level for each state/US during the housing boom period, ranging from 09/2005 to 09/2008. Trough represents the month when HPI fell 

to the lowest level for each state/US after the housing bust, ranging from 01/2009 to 03/2012. Current is 02/2020, the latest HPI data period.

Nationally, nominal home prices have increased by 56.7 percent since the trough, and now exceed their pre-crisis 

peak valuation on a nominal basis by 16.9 percent. The picture is very different across states, with many states well in 

excess of the prior peak, while Connecticut remains 12.8 percent below peak level.

14

HPI Changes

State 2000 to Peak Peak to Trough Trough to Current YOY Current HPI % Above Peak

National 75.2% -25.4% 56.7% 4.4% 16.9%

Alabama 35.9% -15.2% 34.0% 5.7% 13.6%

Alaska 69.4% -3.0% 24.1% 3.0% 20.4%

Arizona 109.9% -47.9% 88.3% 7.2% -1.9%

Arkansas 41.5% -9.7% 26.1% 3.5% 13.9%

California 154.9% -43.3% 94.4% 4.0% 10.2%

Colorado 40.3% -12.9% 83.4% 4.1% 59.8%

Connecticut 92.2% -24.7% 16.0% 2.6% -12.6%

Delaware 95.0% -23.6% 32.3% 5.0% 1.1%

District of Columbia 174.7% -13.7% 59.2% 3.5% 37.5%

Florida 128.5% -46.9% 75.8% 5.2% -6.6%

Georgia 38.4% -31.5% 68.5% 4.9% 15.4%

Hawaii 163.1% -22.5% 52.7% 2.9% 18.3%

Idaho 71.5% -28.6% 94.4% 11.3% 38.8%

Illinois 61.6% -34.4% 38.8% 0.9% -8.9%

Indiana 21.5% -7.8% 38.2% 5.6% 27.4%

Iowa 28.3% -4.7% 27.3% 3.2% 21.3%

Kansas 34.6% -9.2% 43.7% 4.3% 30.5%

Kentucky 29.7% -7.6% 33.7% 4.2% 23.5%

Louisiana 48.7% -5.1% 24.3% 2.4% 17.9%

Maine 82.1% -12.4% 40.6% 6.2% 23.2%

Maryland 129.3% -28.6% 28.2% 2.7% -8.5%

Massachusetts 92.3% -22.9% 57.8% 4.2% 21.6%

Michigan 23.8% -39.4% 78.2% 3.3% 7.9%

Minnesota 66.4% -27.8% 57.5% 3.9% 13.8%

Mississippi 41.0% -13.7% 29.1% 4.7% 11.4%

Missouri 42.6% -15.2% 38.1% 4.9% 17.0%

Montana 82.3% -11.2% 54.1% 5.9% 36.8%

Nebraska 26.7% -6.6% 43.6% 3.8% 34.1%

Nevada 126.8% -59.1% 124.5% 3.0% -8.1%

New Hampshire 90.7% -23.6% 44.7% 6.2% 10.4%

New Jersey 117.8% -28.0% 28.6% 3.3% -7.4%

New Mexico 67.0% -16.5% 29.1% 7.8% 7.9%

New York 98.2% -15.2% 43.5% 4.3% 21.7%

North Carolina 40.7% -15.7% 39.8% 5.0% 17.8%

North Dakota 53.1% -3.8% 57.6% 3.8% 51.6%

Ohio 21.1% -18.4% 39.0% 5.1% 13.4%

Oklahoma 37.5% -2.4% 22.3% 4.8% 19.3%

Oregon 82.0% -28.1% 82.4% 4.7% 31.2%

Pennsylvania 70.1% -11.7% 26.1% 3.3% 11.4%

Rhode Island 130.7% -34.6% 56.9% 7.4% 2.6%

South Carolina 45.0% -19.5% 38.6% 5.1% 11.6%

South Dakota 45.1% -4.0% 48.7% 4.4% 42.8%

Tennessee 35.0% -11.8% 48.5% 6.2% 31.0%

Texas 33.5% -5.8% 53.7% 3.9% 44.8%

Utah 54.8% -22.0% 81.0% 7.1% 41.1%

Vermont 83.5% -7.5% 36.9% 7.4% 26.7%

Virginia 99.6% -22.8% 30.0% 4.0% 0.3%

Washington 85.2% -28.7% 94.0% 6.7% 38.2%

West Virginia 42.4% -6.5% 27.6% 3.3% 19.2%

Wisconsin 44.7% -16.3% 36.9% 3.4% 14.5%

Wyoming 77.4% -5.7% 33.3% 6.4% 25.7%
State of the US Housing Market

Debt,

sehold

D

hou

mort

$9,833

rtgages,

Agency Issuance (past 1 year)

State GNMA Share GNMA Loan 

Count

GNMA Avg.

Loan Size (000)

GSE Avg. Loan 

Size (000)

Agency Outstanding 

GNMA Share GNMA Loan 

Count

GNMA Avg. 

Loan Size (000)

GSE Avg. Loan 

Size (000)

National 32.7% 2,281,009 242.4 262.1 28.5% 11,496,356 164.2 191.2

Alabama 45.0% 41,069 183.3 205.8 43.1% 239,346 128.7 153.6

Alaska 54.2% 6,534 300.5 268.4 49.7% 39,037 231.9 200.5

Arizona 32.9% 84,244 238.7 244.2 27.9% 320,987 166.1 183.5

Arkansas 43.0% 22,282 157.3 185.0 42.7% 140,468 111.3 139.2

California 26.5% 210,106 382.3 374.5 18.7% 793,464 266.5 272.3

Colorado 32.3% 71,409 321.8 310.8 24.1% 240,415 221.9 231.7

Connecticut 31.8% 18,467 228.0 247.8 28.4% 111,187 182.0 189.0

Delaware 39.1% 10,066 232.6 246.3 34.4% 52,671 179.1 185.8

District of Columbia 17.5% 1,799 459.6 412.7 14.3% 10,066 300.6 307.0

Florida 41.4% 197,097 232.5 229.3 33.8% 850,848 167.9 174.5

Georgia 41.0% 103,578 206.6 234.4 36.6% 522,069 144.1 172.8

Hawaii 45.1% 8,707 536.8 427.4 28.0% 32,095 384.3 319.8

Idaho 31.6% 18,309 239.3 236.9 28.3% 80,035 157.3 174.1

Illinois 24.5% 65,363 194.2 223.0 23.4% 377,026 140.5 161.3

Indiana 35.9% 55,846 161.7 180.2 35.2% 310,290 111.3 128.5

Iowa 24.5% 14,920 162.7 185.7 24.1% 88,087 114.0 133.1

Kansas 34.5% 17,462 172.2 198.8 33.9% 106,860 120.3 140.5

Kentucky 38.7% 31,171 166.8 187.2 37.2% 170,629 121.5 134.6

Louisiana 43.7% 33,007 184.2 212.2 40.6% 191,054 137.3 160.1

Maine 33.7% 8,238 204.1 222.5 30.2% 41,504 152.2 163.1

Maryland 43.8% 61,206 307.4 298.3 37.0% 308,541 230.4 220.9

Massachusetts 21.9% 28,837 320.9 323.8 17.7% 126,292 237.4 232.9

Michigan 23.5% 55,100 165.5 193.7 23.3% 312,142 113.5 136.9

Minnesota 23.2% 33,469 221.2 236.0 21.8% 192,231 156.3 173.5

Mississippi 51.2% 19,535 167.6 189.1 49.0% 117,157 120.8 143.3

Missouri 32.9% 47,298 170.6 196.6 33.0% 268,615 120.8 140.9

Montana 30.7% 7,150 242.2 244.4 27.2% 37,200 170.1 180.8

Nebraska 32.5% 12,146 185.5 190.3 31.0% 74,632 123.0 139.2

Nevada 38.8% 38,918 277.2 259.0 31.3% 144,276 190.5 197.4

New Hampshire 31.1% 9,750 258.0 251.1 26.9% 45,603 194.0 184.3

New Jersey 28.5% 48,126 275.4 298.4 25.4% 252,783 209.6 221.2

New Mexico 42.8% 15,985 200.9 211.1 40.6% 99,479 140.8 154.8

New York 24.3% 46,781 268.9 302.2 23.8% 340,517 186.8 217.7

North Carolina 35.4% 84,067 204.6 230.9 31.8% 436,173 141.8 169.1

North Dakota 27.9% 3,171 229.1 226.7 24.5% 17,028 167.4 168.6

Ohio 33.6% 74,429 160.7 177.1 33.7% 459,066 112.3 128.2

Oklahoma 45.9% 29,406 169.3 189.7 46.3% 198,489 119.7 141.7

Oregon 28.7% 31,799 287.2 286.4 21.3% 128,435 201.1 212.4

Pennsylvania 31.5% 65,878 183.7 217.8 30.8% 423,349 135.8 159.9

Rhode Island 36.3% 7,626 253.3 247.3 31.9% 37,639 190.0 185.3

South Carolina 41.0% 49,610 206.4 217.9 35.6% 231,215 147.9 163.4

South Dakota 35.3% 6,045 197.5 207.9 33.8% 31,481 143.6 152.4

Tennessee 39.6% 58,768 208.6 227.8 37.0% 300,350 140.0 168.3

Texas 35.9% 192,502 221.0 238.7 33.8% 1,100,462 144.6 178.4

Utah 26.3% 32,752 278.3 282.9 24.0% 127,856 193.7 214.9

Vermont 25.8% 2,390 207.2 221.9 19.6% 13,067 164.3 160.3

Virginia 44.3% 89,225 299.8 299.4 38.7% 456,826 220.0 219.2

Washington 30.8% 68,104 324.9 328.7 24.6% 274,781 221.4 236.3

West Virginia 51.0% 10,069 169.9 172.1 44.9% 55,807 126.1 127.9

Wisconsin 21.1% 25,723 187.6 201.2 19.2% 139,416 133.5 143.0

Wyoming 41.4% 5,470 232.4 239.5 37.8% 27,310 177.3 179.0

Sources: eMBS and Urban Institute. Note: Ginnie Mae outstanding share are based on loan balance as of March 2020. Ginnie Mae issuance is based on the last 12 

months, from March 2019 to March 2020.

Ginnie Mae MBS constitute 28.5 percent of outstanding agency issuance by loan balance and 32.7 percent of new 

issuance over the past year. However, the Ginnie Mae share varies widely across states, with the share of 

outstanding (by loan balance) as low as 14.3 percent in the District of Columbia and as high as 49.7 percent in 

Alaska. In general, the Ginnie Mae share is higher in states with lower home prices.

15
FHA and VA Outstanding Loan Count 

Sources: eMBS and Urban Institute. Note: Ginnie Mae outstanding share are based on loan balance as of March 2020.

FHA Outstanding Loan Count by State

VA Outstanding Loan Count by State

Texas , Florida, and California are the top 3 states for FHA and VA lending as measured by the number of loans 

outstanding. As of March 2020, TX has 760,000 million FHA and 300,000 VA loans outstanding, FL had 550,000 

FHA and 260,000 VA loans outstanding, and CA had 530,000 FHA and 240,000 VA loans outstanding. Virginia 

ranks 4th for number of VA loans outstanding and 13th for number of FHA loans outstanding.

16
State of the US Housing Market

$11.2

$19.7

$30.9

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019

$ Trillions

Value of the US Housing Market

17

Debt Household equity Total Value

$0.44

$0.50

$6.88

$3.35

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019

$ Trillions

Size of the US Residential Mortgage Market

Private Label Securities Home Equity loans Agency MBS Unsecuritized first liens

Sources: Federal Reserve Flow of Funds, eMBS and Urban Institute. Last updated April 2020. 

Note Top: Single family includes 1-4 family mortgages. The home equity number is grossed up from Fed totals to include the value of households and 

the non-financial business sector. Note Bottom: Unsecuritized first liens includes loans held by commercial banks, GSEs, savings institutions, credit 

unions and other financial companies. 

The Federal Reserve’s Flow of Funds report has indicated a gradually increasing total value of the housing market 

driven by growing home equity since 2012, and Q4 2019 was no different. Total mortgage debt outstanding and 

household equity were up slightly from Q3 2019 to $11.2 and $19.7 trillion in Q4 2019, bringing the total value of 

the housing market to $30.9 trillion as of the year’s end. The market is now 20.8 percent higher than the pre-crisis 

peak in 2006. Agency MBS account for 61.6 percent of the total mortgage debt outstanding, private-label 

securities make up 4.0 percent, and unsecuritized first liens make up 30.0 percent. Second liens comprise the 

remaining 4.5 percent of the total.
State of the US Housing Market

As of March 2020, outstanding securities in the agency market totaled $6.97 trillion: 42.3 percent Fannie Mae, 

28.1 percent Freddie Mac, and 29.6 percent Ginnie Mae MBS. Ginnie Mae has more outstandings than Freddie 

Mac. Within the Ginnie Mae market, both FHA and VA have grown very rapidly since 2009. FHA comprises 58.4 

percent of total Ginnie Mae MBS outstanding, while VA comprises 35.8 percent.

$2.95

18

$1.96

$2.06

0.0

0.5

1.0

1.5

2.0

2.5

3.0

3.5

Mar-02

Sep-02

Mar-03

Sep-03

Mar-04

Sep-04

Mar-05

Sep-05

Mar-06

Sep-06

Mar-07

Sep-07

Mar-08

Sep-08

Mar-09

Sep-09

Mar-10

Sep-10

Mar-11

Sep-11

Mar-12

Sep-12

Mar-13

Sep-13

Mar-14

Sep-14

Mar-15

Sep-15

Mar-16

Sep-16

Mar-17

Sep-17

Mar-18

Sep-18

Mar-19

Sep-19

Mar-20

$ Trillions

Outstanding Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities

Fannie Mae Freddie Mac Ginnie Mae

Sources: eMBS and Urban Institute. Note: Data as of March 2020.

$1.2

$0.7

$0.1

0.0

0.2

0.4

0.6

0.8

1.0

1.2

1.4

Mar-02

Sep-02

Mar-03

Sep-03

Mar-04

Sep-04

Mar-05

Sep-05

Mar-06

Sep-06

Mar-07

Sep-07

Mar-08

Sep-08

Mar-09

Sep-09

Mar-10

Sep-10

Mar-11

Sep-11

Mar-12

Sep-12

Mar-13

Sep-13

Mar-14

Sep-14

Mar-15

Sep-15

Mar-16

Sep-16

Mar-17

Sep-17

Mar-18

Sep-18

Mar-19

Sep-19

Mar-20

$ Trillions

Outstanding Ginnie Mae Mortgage-Backed Securities

FHA VA Other

Sources: eMBS and Urban Institute Note: Data as of March 2020.
State of the US Housing Market

$0.32

$0.15

$0.01

$0.19

$0.0

$0.5

$1.0

$1.5

$2.0

$2.5

$3.0

$3.5

$4.0

2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020

Q1

$ trillions

First Lien Origination Volume

19

Portfolio

PLS securitization

FHA/VA securitization

GSE securitization

Sources: Inside Mortgage Finance and Urban Institute. Note: Data as of Q1 2020.

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020

Q1

First Lien Origination Share

In the first quarter of 2020, first lien originations totaled $670 billion, up from the Q1 2019 volume of $355 billion. 

The share of portfolio originations was 27.9 percent in Q1 2020, a significant decline from the 37.3 percent share 

in the same period 2019. The Q1 2020 GSE share stands at 47.2 percent, up from 39.6 percent in Q1 2019. The 

FHA/VA share grew to 23.1 percent, compared to 21.0 percent last year. Private-label securitization currently 

tallies 1.94 percent, down from 2.9 percent one year ago, and a fraction of its share in the pre-bubble years.

Sources: Inside Mortgage Finance and Urban Institute. Note: Data as of Q1 2020. 

27.9%

1.94%

23.1%

47.2%
US Agency Market, Originations

Debt,

$9,833

household

mortgage ,s

Ginnie Mae Breakdown: Agency Gross Issuance

Issuance Year FHA VA Other Total

2000 $80.2 $18.8 $3.2 $102.2

2001 $133.8 $34.7 $3.1 $171.5

2002 $128.6 $37.9 $2.5 $169.0

2003 $147.9 $62.7 $2.5 $213.1

2004 $85.0 $31.8 $2.5 $119.2

2005 $55.7 $23.5 $2.1 $81.4

2006 $51.2 $23.2 $2.3 $76.7

2007 $67.7 $24.2 $3.0 $94.9

2008 $221.7 $39.0 $6.9 $267.6

2009 $359.9 $74.6 $16.8 $451.3

2010 $304.9 $70.6 $15.3 $390.7

2011 $216.1 $82.3 $16.9 $315.3

2012 $253.4 $131.3 $20.3 $405.0

2013 $239.2 $132.2 $22.2 $393.6

2014 $163.9 $111.4 $21.0 $296.3

2015 $261.5 $155.6 $19.2 $436.3

2016 $281.8 $206.5 $19.9 $508.2

2017 $257.6 $177.8 $20.2 $455.6

2018 $222.6 $160.8 $17.2 $400.6

2019 $266.9 $225.7 $16.0 $508.6

2020 YTD $77.4 $78.3 $4.6 $160.2

2020 % Change YOY 69.4% 153.9% 78.1% 102.6%

2020 Ann. $309.6 $313.1 $18.2 $640.9

 

Agency Gross Issuance

Issuance Year Fannie Mae Freddie Mac GSE Total Ginnie Mae Total

2000 $202.8 $157.9 $360.6 $102.2 $462.8

2001 $506.9 $378.2 $885.1 $171.5 $1,056.6

2002 $710.0 $529.0 $1,238.9 $169.0 $1,407.9

2003 $1,174.4 $700.5 $1,874.9 $213.1 $2,088.0

2004 $517.5 $355.2 $872.6 $119.2 $991.9

2005 $514.1 $379.9 $894.0 $81.4 $975.3

2006 $500.2 $352.9 $853.0 $76.7 $929.7

2007 $633.0 $433.3 $1,066.2 $94.9 $1,161.1

2008 $562.7 $348.7 $911.4 $267.6 $1,179.0

2009 $817.1 $462.9 $1,280.0 $451.3 $1,731.3

2010 $626.6 $377.0 $1,003.5 $390.7 $1,394.3

2011 $578.2 $301.2 $879.3 $315.3 $1,194.7

2012 $847.6 $441.3 $1,288.8 $405.0 $1,693.8

2013 $749.9 $426.7 $1,176.6 $393.6 $1,570.2

2014 $392.9 $258.0 $650.9 $296.3 $947.2

2015 $493.9 $351.9 $845.7 $436.3 $1,282.0

2016 $600.5 $391.1 $991.6 $508.2 $1,499.8

2017 $531.3 $345.9 $877.3 $455.6 $1,332.9

2018 $480.9 $314.1 $795.0 $400.6 $1,195.3

2019 $597.4 $445.2 $1,042.6 $508.6 $1,551.2

2020 YTD $187.7 $132.3 $319.9 $160.2 $480.1

2020 % Change YOY 107.9% 99.2% 104.2% 102.6% 103.7%

2020 Ann. $750.6 $529.0 $1,279.6 $640.9 $1,920.6

Sources: eMBS and Urban Institute (top and bottom). 

Note : Dollar amounts are in billions. “Other“ refers to loans insured by HUD’s Office of Public and Indian Housing and the Department of 

Agriculture’s Rural Development. All data is as of March 2020.

Despite the rise in portfolio origination, agency gross issuance was a robust $1.55 trillion in 2019, the strongest 

year for agency gross issuance since 2013. This reflected primarily strong borrower incentives to refinance, 

further buoyed by improved home purchase affordability. And this strong issuance trend continues through the 

first three months of 2020, with gross issuance of $480.1 billion, up 103.7 percent from the same period in 2019. 

Ginnie Mae gross issuance was up by 102.6 percent and GSE gross issuance was up by 104.2 percent. Within the 

Ginnie Mae market, FHA was up by 69.4 percent and VA origination was up by 153.9 percent.

20
US Agency Market, Originations

Debt,

$9,833

household

mortgages,

Ginnie Mae Breakdown: Net Issuance

Issuance Year FHA VA Other Total

2000 $29.0 $0.3 $0.0 $29.3

2001 $0.7 -$10.6 $0.0 -$9.9

2002 -$22.5 -$28.7 $0.0 -$51.2

2003 -$56.5 -$21.1 $0.0 -$77.6

2004 -$45.2 $5.1 $0.0 -$40.1

2005 -$37.3 -$12.1 $7.2 -$42.2

2006 -$4.7 $3.8 $1.2 $0.2

2007 $20.2 $8.7 $2.0 $30.9

2008 $173.3 $17.7 $5.4 $196.4

2009 $206.4 $35.1 $15.8 $257.4

2010 $158.6 $29.6 $10.0 $198.3

2011 $102.8 $34.0 $12.8 $149.6

2012 $58.9 $45.9 $14.3 $119.1

2013 $20.7 $53.3 $13.9 $87.9

2014 -$4.8 $53.9 $12.5 $61.6

2015 $22.5 $66.9 $7.9 $97.3

2016 $45.6 $73.2 $6.0 $124.9

2017 $50.1 $76.1 $5.0 $131.3

2018 $49.2 $61.2 $3.5 $113.9

2019 $35.9 $58.0 $1.9 $95.7

2020 YTD $6.0 $17.7 $0.8 $24.5

2020 % Change YOY -40.4% 89.5% 1153.9% 26.2%

2020 Ann. $23.9 $70.6 $3.4 $97.9

 

21

Agency Net Issuance

Issuance Year Fannie Mae Freddie Mac GSE Total Ginnie Mae Total

2000 $92.0 $67.8 $159.8 $29.3 $189.1

2001 $216.6 $151.8 $368.4 -$9.9 $358.5

2002 $218.9 $138.3 $357.2 -$51.2 $306.1

2003 $293.7 $41.1 $334.9 -$77.6 $257.3

2004 $32.3 $50.2 $82.5 -$40.1 $42.4

2005 $62.5 $111.7 $174.2 -$42.2 $132.0

2006 $164.3 $149.3 $313.6 $0.2 $313.8

2007 $296.1 $218.8 $514.9 $30.9 $545.7

2008 $213.0 $101.8 $314.8 $196.4 $511.3

2009 $208.1 $42.5 $250.6 $257.4 $508.0

2010 -$156.4 -$146.8 -$303.2 $198.3 -$105.0

2011 -$32.6 -$95.8 -$128.4 $149.6 $21.2

2012 $32.9 -$75.3 -$42.4 $119.1 $76.8

2013 $53.5 $11.8 $65.3 $89.6 $154.9

2014 -$4.0 $30.0 $26.0 $61.6 $87.7

2015 $3.5 $65.0 $68.4 $97.3 $172.5

2016 $60.5 $66.8 $127.4 $126.1 $261.6

2017 $83.7 $77.0 $160.7 $132.3 $293.0

2018 $81.9 $67.6 $149.4 $112.0 $261.5

2019 $87.4 $110.3 $197.8 $95.7 $293.5

2020 YTD $36.4 $30.7 $67.1 $24.5 $91.6

2020 % Change YOY 304.1% 90.7% 167.2% 26.2% 105.7%

2020 Ann. $145.4 $123.0 $268.4 $97.9 $366.4

Sources: eMBS and Urban Institute. Note : Dollar amounts are in billions. “Other“ refersto loansinsured by HUD’s Office of Public and Indian 

Housing and the Department of Agriculture’s Rural Development. All data is as of March 2020.

2019 was a robust year for net agency issuance, with $293.5 billion of net new supply, 32.6 percent of this Ginnie Mae. This 

trend continues into the third month of 2020, with net agency issuance totaling $91.6 billion, up 105.7 percent compared 

with the first three months of 2019. Ginnie Mae net issuance was $24.5 billion, comprising 31.2 percent of total agency net 

issuance. Ginnie Mae net issuance in the first three months of 2020 was comprised of 72.1 percent VA and 24.4 percent FHA.
US Agency Market, Originations

Debt,

 

old

ges

$9,833

Sources: eMBS and Urban Institute.

househ

Note : Dollar amounts are in billions. “Other“ refers to loans insured by HUD’s Office of Public and Indian Housing and the Department of 

Agriculture’s Rural Development. 

mortga ,

All data is as of March 2020.

Agency gross issuance moves inversely to interest rates, generally declining as interest rates rise, increasing when 

interest rates fall, but the seasonal trend is also very strong. This table allows for a comparison with the same 

month in previous years. The March 2020 gross agency issuance of $163.9 billion is well above the March 2019 

level of $83.5 billion, as lower rates gave borrowers a stronger incentive to refinance, contributing to a sharp 

increase in refinancing volume.

22

Date

Gross Issuance Net Issuance

Fannie Mae Freddie Mac Ginnie Mae Total Fannie Mae Freddie Mac Ginnie Mae Total

Jan-17 $55.6 $38.5 $42.6 $136.6 $8.5 $10.7 $10.3 $29.5

Feb-17 $37.6 $27.4 $33.1 $98.1 $2.5 $6.5 $9.4 $18.5

Mar-17 $39.5 $24.4 $31.3 $95.2 $9.7 $6.2 $9.7 $25.6

Apr-17 $39.3 $21.2 $36.4 $97.0 $3.3 $0.4 $11.7 $15.4

May-17 $40.3 $22.6 $36.4 $99.3 $7.7 $2.7 $13.3 $23.8

Jun-17 $45.7 $25.1 $39.9 $110.7 $7.9 $2.4 $13.3 $23.5

Jul-17 $45.3 $27.6 $40.6 $113.5 $5.6 $3.5 $12.3 $21.5

Aug-17 $49.1 $29.3 $42.8 $121.1 $12.0 $6.7 $15.4 $34.1

Sep-17 $47.3 $27.9 $40.2 $115.5 $7.7 $3.8 $10.6 $22.0

Oct-17 $42.9 $34.6 $38.4 $115.9 $5.5 $12.5 $11.0 $28.9

Nov-17 $43.5 $37.2 $37.8 $118.5 $3.9 $13.6 $8.3 $25.8

Dec-17 $45.3 $30.0 $36.2 $111.5 $9.2 $8.1 $7.0 $24.4

Jan-18 $47.4 $21.4 $35.2 $104.0 $12.1 $0.2 $7.7 $20.0

Feb-18 $40.3 $21.5 $31.9 $93.7 $8.3 $2.2 $7.1 $17.6

Mar-18 $35.6 $21.3 $29.0 $85.9 $4.9 $3.0 $6.3 $14.1

Apr-18 $36.3 $26.2 $32.7 $95.2 $1.7 $6.0 $8.8 $16.5

May-18 $38.9 $27.5 $33.7 $100.1 $5.1 $7.2 $10.5 $22.8

Jun-18 $38.2 $28.8 $35.6 $102.5 $2.5 $6.8 $10.3 $19.6

Jul-18 $40.3 $26.2 $35.6 $102.1 $4.2 $3.7 $10.4 $18.3

Aug-18 $50.4 $29.9 $37.5 $117.8 $15.8 $7.9 $12.5 $36.1

Sep-18 $41.8 $30.1 $34.8 $106.6 $5.9 $6.2 $9.0 $21.1

Oct-18 $39.8 $27.4 $33.2 $100.3 $9.7 $7.1 $11.4 $28.2

Nov-18 $35.1 $30.1 $32.4 $97.6 $3.6 $11.0 $9.8 $24.4

Dec-18 $36.9 $23.9 $28.4 $89.1 $8.2 $6.4 $8.2 $22.8

Jan-19 $33.3 $19.2 $29.0 $81.6 $5.9 $2.5 $9.2 $17.6

Feb-19 $27.3 $19.9 $23.5 $70.7 $1.4 $3.4 $4.6 $9.3

Mar-19 $29.6 $27.3 $26.6 $83.5 $1.8 $10.3 $5.6 $17.6

Apr-19 $33.1 $30.8 $32.9 $96.8 $1.3 $10.8 $8.3 $20.4

May-19 $44.5 $34.3 $38.8 $117.6 $6.7 $9.8 $9.4 $26.0

Jun-19 $44.6 $34.0 $43.3 $121.9 $1.9 $5.9 $9.0 $16.8

Jul-19 $51.7 $36.9 $45.9 $134.5 $10.9 $10.1 $11.0 $32.0

Aug-19 $71.1 $50.4 $51.2 $172.6 $20.8 $17.1 $8.7 $46.6

Sep-19 $67.1 $43.0 $52.0 $162.1 $14.1 $7.5 $6.5 $28.0

Oct-19 $65.0 $46.2 $58.4 $169.6 $7.4 $7.1 $11.9 $26.5

Nov-19 $68.1 $50.7 $54.3 $173.1 $5.2 $8.6 $4.1 $18.0

Dec-19 $62.1 $52.5 $52.7 $167.3 $10.1 $17.3 $7.4 $34.7

Jan-20 $61.7 $51.4 $56.0 $169.0 $9.1 $16.5 $8.6 $34.2

Feb-20 $56.5 $39.5 $51.2 $147.2 $9.4 $7.9 $7.1 $24.4

Mar-20 $69.5 $41.1 $53.0 $163.9 $17.9 $6.3 $8.8 $33.0

Monthly Agency Issuance
$34.1

$10.4

$1.9 $0.1 $0.0 

$11.9

$4.5

$1.4 $0.5 $0.1

$11.6

$2.4

$0.3 $0.1 $0.0 

$0

$10

$20

$30

$40

$50

$60

$70

3 3.5 4 4.5 5

Streamlined Cash-out Not streamlined, not cash-out

Coupon

$ billions

Ginnie Mae Refinance Issuance by Type: 2020 YTD

US Agency Market, Originations

Sources: eMBS and Urban Institute.

Note: Based on at-issuance balance. Data as of March 2020.

23

The FHA refinance share stood at 43.6 percent in March 2020, below the 64.4 percent refi share for GSE 

originations and the 68.7 percent share for the VA. Refinances as a share of all originations grew during most of 

2019 as interest rates were low. They continue to grow into 2020 as rates drop further. The bottom section shows 

that nearly all of 2020 YTD Ginnie Mae refinances, predominantly streamlined, were securitized in lower coupon 

pools. Cash-out refinances are typically securitized in higher coupons, but their volume has fallen sharply in recent 

months due to restrictions Ginnie Mae put in place in late 2019, to combat the “churning” problem.

64.4%

43.6%

68.7%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

Mar-14

May-14

Jul-14

Sep-14

Nov-14

Jan-15

Mar-15

May-15

Jul-15

Sep-15

Nov-15

Jan-16

Mar-16

May-16

Jul-16

Sep-16

Nov-16

Jan-17

Mar-17

May-17

Jul-17

Sep-17

Nov-17

Jan-18

Mar-18

May-18

Jul-18

Sep-18

Nov-18

Jan-19

Mar-19

May-19

Jul-19

Sep-19

Nov-19

Jan-20

Mar-20

Percent Refi at Issuance

Refishare GSE FHA VA

Sources: eMBS and Urban Institute. Note: Based on at-issuance balance. Data as of March 2020.
Credit Box

41.5%

42.5%

72.0%

53.8%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

Jul-14 Nov-14Mar-15 Jul-15 Nov-15Mar-16 Jul-16 Nov-16Mar-17 Jul-17 Nov-17Mar-18 Jul-18 Nov-18Mar-19 Jul-19 Nov-19Mar-20

First-time homebuyer share (%)

First Time Homebuyer Share: Purchase Only Loans

Freddie Fannie Ginnie All

Sources: eMBS and Urban Institute. Note: Data as of March 2020.

The first time homebuyer share of Ginnie Mae purchase loans was 72.0 percent in March 2020, down slightly 

from its historical high in May 2019. First time homebuyers comprise a significantly higher share of the Ginnie 

Mae purchase market than of the GSE purchase market, with first time homebuyers accounting for 42.5 

percent and 41.5 percent of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac purchase originations respectively. The bottom table 

shows that based on mortgages originated in March 2020, the average first-time homebuyer was more likely 

than an average repeat buyer to take out a smaller loan, have a lower credit score, a much higher LTV, a similar 

DTI, and pay a slightly higher rate.

24

Fannie Mae Freddie Mac Ginnie Mae All

First-Time Repeat First-Time Repeat First-Time Repeat First-Time Repeat

Loan Amount ($ ) 264,837 291,845 249,942 270,882 228,947 279,299 243,031 281,946 

Credit Score 744.8 757.4 746.0 758.0 679.7 701.2 710.8 741.0

LTV (%) 87.2 79.7 87.2 79.9 96.8 95.6 92.3 84.4

DTI (%) 34.9 36.2 35.0 36.3 41.7 42.7 38.5 38.2

Loan Rate (%) 3.8 3.8 3.9 3.8 3.9 3.7 3.9 3.8

Sources: eMBS and Urban Institute. 

Note: In May 2017 Ginnie Mae began disclosing issuer-reported LTV for FHA loans, which includes the financed upfront mortgage insurance 

premium. To make it consistent with the previously reported LTV, we removed the financed upfront mortgage insurance premium by 

subtracting 169 bps from this new issuer-reported LTV. Data as of March 2020.
Credit Box

81.5%

54.7%

78.9%

72.0%

40%

45%

50%

55%

60%

65%

70%

75%

80%

85%

90%

Jun-14Oct-14Feb-15Jun-15Oct-15Feb-16Jun-16Oct-16Feb-17Jun-17Oct-17Feb-18Jun-18Oct-18Feb-19Jun-19Oct-19Feb-20

First-time homebuyer share (%)

First Time Homebuyer Share: 

Ginnie Mae Breakdown

 

FHA VA Other All

Sources: eMBS and Urban Institute. Note: Data as of March 2020. “Other“ refers to loans insured by HUD’s Office of Public and Indian Housing and

the Department of Agriculture’s Rural Development. In May 2017 Ginnie Mae began disclosing issuer-reported LTV for FHA loans, which includes the 

financed upfront mortgage insurance premium. To make it consistent with the previously reported LTV, we removed the financed upfront mortgage 

insurance premium by subtracting 169 bps from this new issuer-reported LTV. 

Within the Ginnie Mae purchase market, 78.9 percent of FHA loans, 54.7 percent of VA loans and 81.5 percent of 

other loans represent financing for first-time home buyers in March 2020. The bottom table shows that based on 

mortgages originated in February 2020, the average first-time homebuyer was more likely than an average repeat 

buyer to take out a smaller loan, have a lower credit score, higher LTV, similar DTI and pay a higher rate.

25

FHA VA Other Ginnie Mae Total

First-Time Repeat First-Time Repeat First-Time Repeat First-Time Repeat

Loan Amount ($) 224,493 244,225 273,355 327,254 159,007 167,386 228,947 279,299 

Credit Score 670.5 673.3 700.3 728.7 695.6 700.7 679.7 701.2

LTV (%) 95.4 94.0 99.9 96.7 99.2 99.0 96.8 95.6

DTI (%) 43.1 44.4 40.5 41.9 35.0 36.0 41.7 42.7

Loan Rate (%) 4.0 3.9 3.7 3.5 3.8 3.9 3.9 3.7

Sources: eMBS and Urban Institute. Note: Includes only purchase loans. Data as of March 2020.
Credit Box

Sources: Credit Bureau Data and Urban Institute. 

Note: Data as of August 2017.

FICO Score Distribution: Mortgage Owners vs All Consumers

0%

2%

4%

6%

8%

10%

12%

14%

16%

18%

300-500500-520520-540540-560560-580580-600600-620620-640640-660660-680680-700700-720720-740740-760760-780780-800800-820820-850

All Consumers Mortgage owners

All Consumers- Percentiles

Minimum P5 P10 P25 P50 P75 P90 P95 Maximum

300 503 524 587 682 774 813 822 839

26

Mortgage Owners- Percentiles

Minimum P5 P10 P25 P50 P75 P90 P95 Maximum

300 570 615 682 752 801 818 824 839

Consumers who have a mortgage are concentrated at the high end of the general credit score spectrum. The top 

table shows that the median FICO score for all consumers (682) is equal to the 25th percentile of those with a 

mortgage (682).
t,

rtgages,

house

mortg

$9,833

hold

Deb

Purchase FICO

Number of Loans P10 P25 Median P75 P90 Mean

All 231,966 642 683 736 777 797 727 

Fannie 81,655 693 725 761 787 801 753 

Freddie 59,104 694 725 761 788 802 754 

Ginnie 91,207 621 644 678 726 771 686 

Refi FICO

Number of Loans P10 P25 Median P75 P90 Mean

All 333,816 662 704 750 782 800 739 

Fannie 160,814 691 724 761 787 802 753 

Freddie 94,917 687 720 758 786 801 750 

Ginnie 78,085 622 653 692 745 783 697 

All FICO

Number of Loans P10 P25 Median P75 P90 Mean

All 565,782 652 695 744 780 799 734 

Fannie 242,469 691 724 761 787 802 753 

Freddie 154,021 690 722 759 787 801 751 

Ginnie 169,292 621 647 684 735 778 691 

 

Purchase FICO: Ginnie Mae Breakdown By Source

Number of Loans P10 P25 Median P75 P90 Mean

All 91,207 621 644 678 726 771 686 

FHA 56,423 614 637 666 701 741 671 

VA 26,850 631 662 714 766 794 713 

Other 7,934 637 658 693 734 767 697 

Refi FICO: Ginnie Mae Breakdown By Source

Number of Loans P10 P25 Median P75 P90 Mean

All 78,085 622 653 692 745 783 697 

FHA 31,114 608 636 664 696 734 667 

VA 46,370 637 673 720 767 793 716 

Other 601 643 670 709 751 779 708 

All FICO: Ginnie Mae Breakdown By Source

Number of Loans P10 P25 Median P75 P90 Mean

All 169,292 621 647 684 735 778 691 

FHA 87,537 612 637 665 699 739 670 

VA 73,220 634 669 718 767 794 715 

Other 8,535 637 659 694 735 768 697 

March 2020 Credit Box at a Glance

Sources: eMBS and Urban Institute. Note: “Other“ refers to loans insured by HUD’s Office of Public and Indian Housing and the Department of

Agriculture’s Rural Development.Data as of March 2020.

In March 2020, the median Ginnie Mae FICO score was 684 versus 761 for Fannie Mae and 759 for Freddie Mac. 

Note that the FICO score for the 10th percentile was 621 for Ginnie Mae, versus 691 for Fannie Mae and 690 for 

Freddie Mac. Within the Ginnie Mae market, FHA loans have a median FICO score of 665, VA loans have a median 

FICO score of 718 and other loans have a median FICO score of 694.

27
March 2020 Credit Box at a Glance

s old

m rtgages,

Debt,

hou eh

or

$9,833

Purchase LTV

Number of Loans P10 P25 Median P75 P90 Mean

All 232,275 74.0 80.0 95.0 96.5 100.0 87.9 

Fannie 81,723 65.0 79.0 80.0 95.0 97.0 82.3 

Freddie 59,145 65.0 80.0 80.0 95.0 95.0 82.4 

Ginnie 91,407 93.0 96.5 96.5 100.0 102.0 96.5 

Refi LTV

Number of Loans P10 P25 Median P75 P90 Mean

All 351,498 48.0 62.0 75.0 85.0 96.4 72.9 

Fannie 160,816 44.0 58.0 70.0 79.0 85.0 67.0 

Freddie 94,927 45.0 59.0 71.0 79.0 82.0 67.4 

Ginnie 95,755 71.7 81.4 91.8 98.1 100.0 88.3 

All LTV

Number of Loans P10 P25 Median P75 P90 Mean

All 583,773 53.6 70.0 80.0 95.0 97.5 78.9 

Fannie 242,539 48.0 62.0 75.0 81.0 95.0 72.2 

Freddie 154,072 49.0 65.0 76.0 82.0 95.0 73.2 

Ginnie 187,162 79.0 89.6 96.5 98.8 101.0 92.3

 

Purchase LTV: Ginnie Mae Breakdown By Source

Number of Loans P10 P25 Median P75 P90 Mean

All 91,407 93.0 96.5 96.5 100.0 102.0 96.5 

FHA 56,533 92.8 96.5 96.5 96.5 96.5 95.1

VA 26,898 91.5 100.0 100.0 102.3 103.3 98.4 

Other 7,976 95.4 99.1 101.0 101.0 101.7 99.2 

Refi LTV: Ginnie Mae Breakdown By Source

Number of Loans P10 P25 Median P75 P90 Mean

All 95,755 71.7 81.4 91.8 98.1 100.0 88.3 

FHA 39,840 73.2 81.4 90.9 97.2 98.4 87.4 

VA 55,264 70.3 82.7 92.2 99.4 101.1 88.8 

Other 651 82.8 93.2 99.0 101.0 102.0 95.5 

All LTV: Ginnie Mae Breakdown By Source

Number of Loans P10 P25 Median P75 P90 Mean

All 187,162 79.0 89.6 96.5 98.8 101.0 92.3 

FHA 96,373 80.9 90.2 96.5 96.5 97.4 91.9 

VA 82,162 74.9 87.3 97.8 100.0 102.3 92.0 

Other 8,627 94.5 98.9 101.0 101.0 101.7 98.9 

Sources: eMBS and Urban Institute. Note: “Other“ refers to loans insured by HUD’s Office of Public and Indian Housing and the Department of

Agriculture’s Rural Development. In May 2017 Ginnie Mae began disclosing issuer-reported LTV for FHA loans, which includes the financed 

upfront mortgage insurance premium. To make it consistent with the previously reported LTV, we removed the financed upfront mortgage 

insurance premium by subtracting 169 bps from this new issuer-reported LTV. Data as of March 2020.

In March 2020, the median loan-to-value ratio (LTV) was 96.5 percent for Ginnie Mae, 75 percent for Fannie Mae 

and 76 percent for Freddie Mac. The 90th percentile was 101.0 percent for Ginnie Mae, and 95 percent for both 

Freddie and Fannie. Within the Ginnie Mae market, the median LTV was 96.5 for FHA, 97.8 for VA and 101.0 for 

other programs.

28
De

mortgages,

hous

rt

$9,833

ehold

bt,

Purchase DTI

Number of Loans P10 P25 Median P75 P90 Mean

All 231,925 24.0 31.0 39.0 45.0 50.0 38.1 

Fannie 81,714 22.0 29.0 37.0 43.0 47.0 35.5 

Freddie 59,142 22.0 29.0 37.0 43.0 47.0 35.6 

Ginnie 91,069 28.9 35.6 42.7 49.3 54.3 42.0 

Refi DTI

Number of Loans P10 P25 Median P75 P90 Mean

All 292,754 21.0 28.0 36.0 43.0 47.1 35.1 

Fannie 160,756 21.0 27.0 35.0 42.0 46.0 34.3 

Freddie 94,920 21.0 27.0 35.0 42.0 46.0 34.5 

Ginnie 37,078 24.9 32.0 40.6 48.5 54.2 39.8 

All DTI

Number of Loans P10 P25 Median P75 P90 Mean

All 524,679 22.0 29.0 37.0 44.0 49.0 36.4

Fannie 242,470 21.0 28.0 36.0 43.0 47.0 34.7 

Freddie 154,062 21.0 28.0 36.0 43.0 47.0 34.9 

Ginnie 128,147 27.8 34.6 42.2 49.1 54.3 41.4 

 

Purchase DTI: Ginnie Mae Breakdown By Source

Number of Loans P10 P25 Median P75 P90 Mean

All 91,069 28.9 35.6 42.7 49.3 54.3 42.0 

FHA 56,503 30.8 37.6 44.4 50.4 54.7 43.4 

VA 26,644 27.0 34.0 41.7 48.6 54.1 41.1 

Other 7,922 25.9 30.9 36.1 40.2 43.1 35.2 

Refi DTI: Ginnie Mae Breakdown By Source

Number of Loans P10 P25 Median P75 P90 Mean

All 37,078 24.9 32.0 40.6 48.5 54.2 39.8 

FHA 19,003 27.7 34.7 43.3 50.0 54.6 41.9 

VA 17,629 22.8 30.5 37.7 46.3 53.1 37.9

Other 446 14.6 20.9 30.2 37.0 42.4 29.3 

All DTI: Ginnie Mae Breakdown By Source

Number of Loans P10 P25 Median P75 P90 Mean

All 128,147 27.8 34.6 42.2 49.1 54.3 41.4 

FHA 75,506 30.0 36.9 44.1 50.3 54.7 43.0 

VA 44,273 25.2 32.0 40.3 47.8 53.8 39.8 

Other 8,368 25.2 30.5 35.9 40.1 43.1 34.9 

March 2020 Credit Box at a Glance

Sources: eMBS and Urban Institute. Note: “Other“ refers to loans insured by HUD’s Office of Public and Indian Housing and the Department of

Agriculture’s Rural Development. Data as of March 2020.

In March 2020, the median Ginnie Mae debt-to-income ratio (DTI) was 42.2 percent, considerably higher than the 

36.0 percent median DTI for both Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae. The 90th percentile for Ginnie Mae was 54.3 

percent, also much higher than the 47.0 percent DTI for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, respectively. Within the 

Ginnie Mae market, the median FHA DTI ratio was 44.1 percent, versus 40.3 percent for VA and 35.9 percent for 

other lending programs.

29
Credit Box: Historical

660

680

700

720

740

760

780

Jul-14

Nov-14

Mar-15

Jul-15

Nov-15

Mar-16

Jul-16

Nov-16

Mar-17

Jul-17

Nov-17

Mar-18

Jul-18

Nov-18

Mar-19

Jul-19

Nov-19

Mar-20

FICO Scores

FICO Scores for Purchase Loans 

Freddie Median FICO Fannie Median FICO

Ginnie Median FICO All Median FICO

660

680

700

720

740

760

780

Jul-14

Nov-14

Mar-15

Jul-15

Nov-15

Mar-16

Jul-16

Nov-16

Mar-17

Jul-17

Nov-17

Mar-18

Jul-18

Nov-18

Mar-19

Jul-19

Nov-19

Mar-20

FICO Scores for Refinance Loans

Freddie Median FICO Fannie Median FICO

Ginnie Median FICO All Median FICO

761

759

684

744

660

680

700

720

740

760

780

Jul-14 Nov-14Mar-15 Jul-15 Nov-15Mar-16 Jul-16 Nov-16Mar-17 Jul-17 Nov-17Mar-18 Jul-18 Nov-18Mar-19 Jul-19 Nov-19Mar-20

FICO Scores

FICO Scores for All Loans

30

Freddie Median FICO Fannie Median FICO Ginnie Median FICO All Median FICO

Sources: eMBS and Urban Institute. Note:Data as of March 2020. Sources: eMBS and Urban Institute. Note: Data as of March 2020.

Sources: eMBS and Urban Institute. Note: Data as of March 2020.

The median FICO score for all agency loans originated in March 2020 was 744, up considerably since the start 

of last year, owing to the refinance wave, which higher FICO borrowers take advantage of with greater 

frequency. The figures show that the median FICO score for Ginnie Mae borrowers has always been 

considerably lower than for GSE borrowers. Since early 2019, the median FICO scores for Fannie, Freddie and 

Ginnie borrowers have moved up for both purchase and refinance loans. The difference between Ginnie Mae 

and GSE borrower FICOs is slightly wider for purchase loans than for refi loans.
Credit Box: Historical

96.5

65.0

70.0

75.0

80.0

85.0

90.0

95.0

100.0

Mar-15

May-15

Jul-15

Sep-15

Nov-15

Jan-16

Mar-16

May-16

Jul-16

Sep-16

Nov-16

Jan-17

Mar-17

May-17

Jul-17

Sep-17

Nov-17

Jan-18

Mar-18

May-18

Jul-18

Sep-18

Nov-18

Jan-19

Mar-19

May-19

Jul-19

Sep-19

Nov-19

Jan-20

Mar-20

Loan-to-Value Ratio

LTV Ratio for All Loans

Freddie Median LTV Fannie Median LTV Ginnie Median LTV All Median LTV

Median LTVs for Ginnie Mae loans have historically been at 96.5 percent, much higher than the 75–80 LTVs 

for the GSEs. Median debt-to-income ratios for Ginnie Mae loans have historically been in the low 40s, 

considerably higher than for the GSEs. DTIs increased in the 2017-2018 period for both Ginnie Mae and 

GSE loans, with the movement more pronounced for Ginnie Mae. Increases in DTI are very typical in an 

environment of rising interest rates and rising home prices. All three agencies witnessed measurable 

declines in DTI, beginning in early 2019, driven by lower interest rates.

31

Sources: eMBS and Urban Institute. Note: In May 2017 Ginnie Mae began disclosing issuer-reported LTV for FHA loans, which includes the financed 

upfront mortgage insurance premium. To make it consistent with the previously reported LTV, we removed the financed upfront mortgage insurance 

premium by subtracting 169 bps from this new issuer-reported LTV. Sources and note apply to all three graphs. Data as of March 2020.

80.0

76.0

75.0

36.0

42.2

37.0

32.0

34.0

36.0

38.0

40.0

42.0

44.0

46.0

Jul-14 Nov-14 Mar-15 Jul-15 Nov-15 Mar-16 Jul-16 Nov-16 Mar-17 Jul-17 Nov-17 Mar-18 Jul-18 Nov-18 Mar-19 Jul-19 Nov-19 Mar-20

Debt-to-Income Ratio

DTI Ratio for All Loans

Freddie Median DTI Fannie Median DTI Ginnie Median DTI All Median DTI
Credit Box: Historical

0.00%

2.00%

4.00%

6.00%

8.00%

10.00%

12.00%

14.00%

1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41 43 45 47 49 51 53 55 57 59 61 63 65 67 69 71 73 75 77 79 81 83 85

FHA Cumulative Default Rate by DTI and FICO

32

DTI<=45, FICO <=660 DTI <=45, FICO>660

DTI>45, FICO <=660 DTI>45, FICO>660

Loan age

Cumulative default rate

0.00%

1.00%

2.00%

3.00%

4.00%

5.00%

6.00%

7.00%

8.00%

1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41 43 45 47 49 51 53 55 57 59 61 63 65 67 69 71 73 75 77 79 81 83 85

VA Cumulative Default Rate by DTI and FICO

DTI<=45, FICO <=700 DTI <=45, FICO>700

DTI>45, FICO <=700 DTI>45, FICO>700

Loan age

Cumulative default rate

Sources: eMBS and Urban Institute. Note: Defaults = 180 days delinquent. Data as of March 2020.

DTI is a much weaker predictor of performance than FICO score. The top chart shows FHA borrowers with higher 

DTIs do default more than those with lower DTIs, but the differences are modest, as evidenced by the fact that the 

black line is very close to the blue line and the grey line is not that much above the yellow line. By contrast, FICO 

makes a much larger difference, as can be seen by comparing the blue line to the yellow line or the black line to the 

gray line. And low DTI/low FICO borrowers default much less than high DTI/high FICO borrowers, as can be seen 

by comparing the blue line to the gray line. The bottom chart, for VA borrowers illustrates the same point; DTI is a 

much weaker predictor of loan performance than credit score.

Sources: eMBS and Urban Institute. Note: Defaults = 180 days delinquent. Data as of March 2020.
96%

85%

65%

48%

36%

97%

89%

63%

42%

32%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

<640 640–680 680–700 700–750 ≥ 750

33

94%

85%

66%

48%

36%

97%

89%

65%

43%

34%

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

120%

<640 640–680 680–700 700–750 ≥ 750

January 2018- March 2018 January 2020- March 2020

Credit Box: Historical

DTI < 35

Sources: eMBS and Urban Institute. 

Ginnie Mae Share of Agency Market by DTI and FICO for Loans with LTV ≥ 95 

35 ≤ DTI < 45 

97%

92%

79%

64%

51%

99% 98%

86%

68%

54%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

<640 640–680 680–700 700–750 ≥ 750

Credit score

Credit score

Credit score

DTI ≥ 45

This table shows Ginnie Mae’s share of agency high-LTV lending by DTI and FICO. In each DTI bucket, Ginnie 

Mae’s share is more concentrated in lower FICO scores than in higher FICO scores. In the first three months of 

2020, Ginnie Mae accounted for 97 percent of agency issuance for DTIs under 35 and FICOs below 640, 

compared to just 34 percent for DTIs below 35 and FICO 750 and higher. The Ginnie/GSE split in the 35-45 DTI 

bucket looks a lot like the below 35 percent DTI bucket. In January 2020− March 2020, Ginnie Mae’s share of 

issuance was higher for DTIs of 45 and above, as compared with the two lower DTI buckets. Ginnie Mae share of 

loans with a DTI of 45 and above and a FICO of 680-700 was 86 percent; it was 63-65 percent for the same FICO 

in the lower DTI buckets. Comparing this period to 2 years earlier, it is clear the GSEs have marginally stepped up 

their higher LTV lending for borrowers with FICOs of 680 or higher in the two lower DTI buckets.
High LTV Loans: Ginnie Mae vs. 

GSEs

Sources: eMBS and Urban Institute.

January 2018-March 2018

FICO

DTI <640 640–680 680–700 700–750 ≥ 750 All

34

< 35 2.8% 5.2% 2.9% 7.3% 8.9% 27.1%

35 −45 5.3% 9.5% 4.9% 11.1% 9.4% 40.3%

≥ 45 4.5% 8.8% 4.4% 8.9% 6.1% 32.6%

All 12.7% 23.5% 12.2% 27.2% 24.5% 100.0%

January 2020-March 2020

FICO

DTI <640 640–680 680–700 700–750 ≥ 750 All

< 35 2.8% 4.7% 2.7% 7.6% 10.4% 28.1%

35 −45 5.0% 8.3% 4.7% 11.7% 10.9% 40.7%

≥ 45 4.6% 7.9% 3.9% 8.4% 6.4% 31.3%

All 12.4% 20.9% 11.2% 27.7% 27.7% 100.0%

Agency Market Share by DTI and FICO for Loans with LTV ≥ 95

Share of Loans with LTV ≥ 95

Ginnie Mae GSE All

January 2018- March 2018 67.6% 16.8% 33.0%

January 2020- March 2020 65.9% 12.8% 26.4%

Ginnie Mae dominates high-LTV lending, with 65.9 percent of its issuances in the January 2020-March 2020 

period having LTVs of 95 or above, compared to 12.8 percent for the GSEs. The GSEs have decreased their highLTV lending share from 16.8 percent in January 2018−March 2018. Ginnie Mae’s high-LTV lending is also down, 

but by less than the GSE share, over the same period from 67.6 percent. The share of high-LTV agency loans 

going to highest FICO borrowers (i.e. above 750) has increased from the January 2018-March 2018 period to the 

January 2020-March 2020 period. The distribution by DTI looks similar across the two three month periods.
Nonbank Originators

Sources: eMBS and Urban Institute

Note:Data as of March 2020.

Sources: eMBS and Urban Institute. Note: “Other“ refers to loans insured by HUD’s Office of Public and Indian Housing and the Department of Agriculture’s Rural 

Development. Data as of March 2020.

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

Mar-13

May-13

Jul-13

Sep-13

Nov-13

Jan-14

Mar-14

May-14

Jul-14

Sep-14

Nov-14

Jan-15

Mar-15

May-15

Jul-15

Sep-15

Nov-15

Jan-16

Mar-16

May-16

Jul-16

Sep-16

Nov-16

Jan-17

Mar-17

May-17

Jul-17

Sep-17

Nov-17

Jan-18

Mar-18

May-18

Jul-18

Sep-18

Nov-18

Jan-19

Mar-19

May-19

Jul-19

Sep-19

Nov-19

35

Jan-20

Mar-20

Nonbank Origination Share: All Loans

All Fannie Freddie Ginnie

86.2%

69.0%

65.1%

53.3%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

Mar-13

Jul-13

Nov-13

Mar-14

Jul-14

Nov-14

Mar-15

Jul-15

Nov-15

Mar-16

Jul-16

Nov-16

Mar-17

Jul-17

Nov-17

Mar-18

Jul-18

Nov-18

Mar-19

Jul-19

Nov-19

Mar-20

All Fannie Freddie Ginnie

Nonbank Origination Share: 

Refinance Loans

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

Mar-13

Jul-13

Nov-13

Mar-14

Jul-14

Nov-14

Mar-15

Jul-15

Nov-15

Mar-16

Jul-16

Nov-16

Mar-17

Jul-17

Nov-17

Mar-18

Jul-18

Nov-18

Mar-19

Jul-19

Nov-19

Mar-20

All Fannie Freddie Ginnie

Nonbank Origination Share: 

Purchase Loans

The nonbank origination share has been rising steadily for all three agencies since 2013. The Ginnie Mae 

nonbank share has been consistently higher than the GSEs, standing at 86.2 percent in March 2020, down from 

a record high of 90.2 percent at the end of 2019. Freddie’s nonbank share grew to 53.3 percent, while Fannie’s 

nonbank rose more gradually to 65.1 percent in March (note that these numbers can be volatile on a month-tomonth basis). Ginnie Mae, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac all have higher nonbank origination shares for refi 

activity than for purchase activity. Freddie Mac’s nonbank share is the lowest among the three agencies for both 

purchase and refinance loans.
Ginnie Mae Nonbank Originators 

Sources: eMBS and Urban Institute

Note:Data as of March 2020.

Sources: eMBS and Urban Institute. Note: “Other“ refers to loans insured by HUD’s Office of Public and Indian Housing and the Department of Agriculture’s Rural 

Development. Data as of March 2020.

In March 2020, Ginnie Mae’s nonbank share fell to 86.2 percent. The nonbank originator share for FHA fell 

slightly to 92 percent in March, compared to 92.6 percent previous month. . The nonbank originator share for 

VA was lower than last month at 81 percent and the nonbank originator share for other loans, which can 

fluctuate quite a bit month to month, fell to 87 percent.

36

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

Mar-13

May-13

Jul-13

Sep-13

Nov-13

Jan-14

Mar-14

May-14

Jul-14

Sep-14

Nov-14

Jan-15

Mar-15

May-15

Jul-15

Sep-15

Nov-15

Jan-16

Mar-16

May-16

Jul-16

Sep-16

Nov-16

Jan-17

Mar-17

May-17

Jul-17

Sep-17

Nov-17

Jan-18

Mar-18

May-18

Jul-18

Sep-18

Nov-18

Jan-19

Mar-19

May-19

Jul-19

Sep-19

Nov-19

Jan-20

Mar-20

Non-bank originator share

Ginnie Mae Nonbank Originator Share: All Loans

All FHA VA Other

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

Mar-13

Jul-13

Nov-13

Mar-14

Jul-14

Nov-14

Mar-15

Jul-15

Nov-15

Mar-16

Jul-16

Nov-16

Mar-17

Jul-17

Nov-17

Mar-18

Jul-18

Nov-18

Mar-19

Jul-19

Nov-19

Mar-20

Non-bank originator share

Ginnie Mae Nonbank Share: 

Purchase Loans

All FHA VA Other

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

Mar-13

Jul-13

Nov-13

Mar-14

Jul-14

Nov-14

Mar-15

Jul-15

Nov-15

Mar-16

Jul-16

Nov-16

Mar-17

Jul-17

Nov-17

Mar-18

Jul-18

Nov-18

Mar-19

Jul-19

Nov-19

Mar-20

Ginnie Mae Nonbank Share: 

Refinance Loans

All FHA VA Other

92%

87%

86%

81%
Sources: eMBS and Urban Institute. 

Note: Data as of March 2020. 

Sources: eMBS and Urban Institute. 

Note: Data as of March 2020. 

745

756

737

680

690

700

710

720

730

740

750

760

770

Sep-13

Dec-13

Mar-14

Jun-14

Sep-14

Dec-14

Mar-15

Jun-15

Sep-15

Dec-15

Mar-16

Jun-16

Sep-16

Dec-16

Mar-17

Jun-17

Sep-17

Dec-17

Mar-18

Jun-18

Sep-18

Dec-18

Mar-19

Jun-19

Sep-19

Dec-19

Mar-20

Agency FICO: Bank vs. Nonbank

FICO All Median FICO Bank Median FICO Nonbank Median FICO

Sources: eMBS and Urban Institute. Note: Data as of March 2020. 

37

660

680

700

720

740

760

780

Nov-13

Mar-14

Jul-14

Nov-14

Mar-15

Jul-15

Nov-15

Mar-16

Jul-16

Nov-16

Mar-17

Jul-17

Nov-17

Mar-18

Jul-18

Nov-18

Mar-19

Jul-19

Nov-19

Mar-20

All Median FICO Bank Median FICO

Nonbank Median FICO

Ginnie Mae FICO: Bank vs. Nonbank

660

680

700

720

740

760

780

Nov-13

Mar-14

Jul-14

Nov-14

Mar-15

Jul-15

Nov-15

Mar-16

Jul-16

Nov-16

Mar-17

Jul-17

Nov-17

Mar-18

Jul-18

Nov-18

Mar-19

Jul-19

Nov-19

Mar-20

All Median FICO Bank Median FICO

Nonbank Median FICO

GSE FICO: Bank vs. Nonbank

Nonbank Credit Box

FICO FICO

Nonbank originators have played a key role in opening up access to credit. The median GSE and the median Ginnie Mae 

FICO scores for loans originated by nonbanks are lower than their bank counterparts. Within the GSE space, both bank 

and nonbank FICOs have increased since early 2014. In contrast, within the Ginnie Mae space, FICO scores for bank 

originations are measurably higher since early 2014 while nonbank FICOs have remained flat. This largely reflects the 

sharp cut-back in FHA lending by many banks.
Sources: eMBS and Urban Institute. Note: Data as of March 2020. Sources: eMBS and Urban Institute. Note: Data as of March 2020.

66

68

70

72

74

76

78

80

82

84

86

88

90

Nov-13

Mar-14

Jul-14

Nov-14

Mar-15

Jul-15

Nov-15

Mar-16

Jul-16

Nov-16

Mar-17

Jul-17

Nov-17

Mar-18

Jul-18

Nov-18

Mar-19

Jul-19

Nov-19

Mar-20

GSE LTV: Bank vs. Nonbank

All Median LTV Bank Median LTV

Nonbank Median LTV

Sources: eMBS and Urban Institute. Note: Data as of March 2020.

90

91

92

93

94

95

96

97

98

99

100

Nov-13

Mar-14

Jul-14

Nov-14

Mar-15

Jul-15

Nov-15

Mar-16

Jul-16

Nov-16

Mar-17

Jul-17

Nov-17

Mar-18

Jul-18

Nov-18

Mar-19

Jul-19

Nov-19

Mar-20

All Median LTV Bank Median LTV

Nonbank Median LTV

Sources: eMBS and Urban Institute. Note: Data as of March 2020.

38

30

32

34

36

38

40

42

44

46

Nov-13

Mar-14

Jul-14

Nov-14

Mar-15

Jul-15

Nov-15

Mar-16

Jul-16

Nov-16

Mar-17

Jul-17

Nov-17

Mar-18

Jul-18

Nov-18

Mar-19

Jul-19

Nov-19

Mar-20

All Median DTI Bank Median DTI

Nonbank Median DTI

30

32

34

36

38

40

42

44

46

Nov-13

Mar-14

Jul-14

Nov-14

Mar-15

Jul-15

Nov-15

Mar-16

Jul-16

Nov-16

Mar-17

Jul-17

Nov-17

Mar-18

Jul-18

Nov-18

Mar-19

Jul-19

Nov-19

Mar-20

GSE DTI: Bank vs. Nonbank

All Median DTI Bank Median DTI

Nonbank Median DTI

Nonbank Credit Box

Ginnie Mae LTV: Bank vs. Nonbank

Ginnie Mae DTI: Bank vs. Nonbank

LTV LTV

DTI DTI

The median LTVs for nonbank and bank originations are comparable, while the median DTI for nonbank loans is higher 

than for bank loans, indicating that nonbanks are more accommodating in both this and the FICO dimension. Between 

early 2017 and early 2019, there was a substantial increase in DTIs, which has mostly reversed over the subsequent 

months. This is true for both Ginnie Mae and the GSEs, for banks and nonbanks. As interest rates increased, DTIs rose, 

because borrower payments were driven up relative to incomes. With the fall in interest rates in 2019 and 2020, DTIs 

have dropped.
650

660

670

680

690

700

710

720

730

740

750

Nov-13

Mar-14

Jul-14

Nov-14

Mar-15

Jul-15

Nov-15

Mar-16

Jul-16

Nov-16

Mar-17

Jul-17

Nov-17

Mar-18

Jul-18

Nov-18

Mar-19

Jul-19

Nov-19

Mar-20

FICO scores

Ginnie Mae VA FICO Scores: Bank 

vs. Nonbank

VA All Median FICO VA Bank Median FICO

VA Nonbank Median FICO

Ginnie Mae Nonbank Originators: 

Credit Box

Sources: eMBS and Urban Institute

Note:Data as of March 2020.

Sources: eMBS and Urban Institute

Note: “Other“ refers to loans insured by HUD’s Office of Public and Indian Housing 

and the Department of Agriculture’s Rural Development. Data as of March 2020.

The median FICO score for Ginnie Mae bank originators fell in March 2020; however bank FICOs remain 24 

points above non-banks. The gap between banks and non-banks is very apparent for FHA and VA lending.

39

650

660

670

680

690

700

710

720

730

740

Nov-13

Mar-14

Jul-14

Nov-14

Mar-15

Jul-15

Nov-15

Mar-16

Jul-16

Nov-16

Mar-17

Jul-17

Nov-17

Mar-18

Jul-18

Nov-18

Mar-19

Jul-19

Nov-19

Mar-20

FICO score

Ginnie Mae FICO Scores: 

Bank vs. Nonbank

All Median FICO Bank Median FICO

Nonbank Median FICO

650

660

670

680

690

700

710

720

730

740

Nov-13

Mar-14

Jul-14

Nov-14

Mar-15

Jul-15

Nov-15

Mar-16

Jul-16

Nov-16

Mar-17

Jul-17

Nov-17

Mar-18

Jul-18

Nov-18

Mar-19

Jul-19

Nov-19

Mar-20

Ginnie Mae FHA FICO Scores: 

Bank vs. Nonbank

FHA All Median FICO FHA Bank Median FICO

FHA Nonbank Median FICO

650

660

670

680

690

700

710

720

730

740

Nov-13

Mar-14

Jul-14

Nov-14

Mar-15

Jul-15

Nov-15

Mar-16

Jul-16

Nov-16

Mar-17

Jul-17

Nov-17

Mar-18

Jul-18

Nov-18

Mar-19

Jul-19

Nov-19

Mar-20

Ginnie Mae Other FICO Scores: 

Bank vs. Nonbank

Other All Median FICO Other Bank Median FICO

Other Nonbank Median FICO

Sources: eMBS and Urban Institute Note:Data as of March 2020. Sources: eMBS and Urban Institute Note:Data as of March 2020.
34

35

36

37

38

39

40

41

42

43

44

45

46

Nov-13

Mar-14

Jul-14

Nov-14

Mar-15

Jul-15

Nov-15

Mar-16

Jul-16

Nov-16

Mar-17

Jul-17

Nov-17

Mar-18

Jul-18

Nov-18

Mar-19

Jul-19

Nov-19

Mar-20

FICO scores

Ginnie Mae VA DTI: Bank vs. 

Nonbank

VA All Median DTI VA Bank Median DTI

VA Nonbank Median DTI

Ginnie Mae Nonbank Originators: 

Credit Box

Sources: eMBS and Urban Institute

Note:Data as of March 2020.

Sources: eMBS and Urban Institute

Note: “Other“ refers to loans insured by HUD’s Office of Public and Indian Housing 

and the Department of Agriculture’s Rural Development. Data as of March 2020.

An analysis of borrowers’ DTI ratios for bank versus non-bank originators indicates that the former have a 

lower median DTI. The DTIs for FHA and VA borrowers experienced notable increases during 2017 and 2018 

for both banks and nonbank originators, while the Other origination DTIs stayed relatively flat. Rising DTIs are 

expected in a rising rate environment. After peaking in January 2019, Ginnie DTIs have reverted to 2017 levels, 

as rates have declined.

40

34

35

36

37

38

39

40

41

42

43

44

45

46

Nov-13

Mar-14

Jul-14

Nov-14

Mar-15

Jul-15

Nov-15

Mar-16

Jul-16

Nov-16

Mar-17

Jul-17

Nov-17

Mar-18

Jul-18

Nov-18

Mar-19

Jul-19

Nov-19

Mar-20

FICO score

Ginnie Mae DTI: 

Bank vs. Nonbank

All Median DTI Bank Median DTI

Nonbank Median DTI

34

35

36

37

38

39

40

41

42

43

44

45

46

Nov-13

Mar-14

Jul-14

Nov-14

Mar-15

Jul-15

Nov-15

Mar-16

Jul-16

Nov-16

Mar-17

Jul-17

Nov-17

Mar-18

Jul-18

Nov-18

Mar-19

Jul-19

Nov-19

Mar-20

Ginnie Mae FHA DTI: Bank vs. 

Nonbank

FHA All Median DTI FHA Bank Median DTI

FHA Nonbank Median DTI

34

35

36

37

38

39

40

41

42

43

44

45

46

Nov-13

Mar-14

Jul-14

Nov-14

Mar-15

Jul-15

Nov-15

Mar-16

Jul-16

Nov-16

Mar-17

Jul-17

Nov-17

Mar-18

Jul-18

Nov-18

Mar-19

Jul-19

Nov-19

Mar-20

Ginnie Mae Other DTI: Bank vs. 

Nonbank

Other All Median DTI Other Bank Median DTI

Other Nonbank Median DTI

Sources: eMBS and Urban Institute Note:Data as of March 2020. Sources: eMBS and Urban Institute Note:Data as of March 2020.
Holders of Ginnie Mae MSRs

Sources: eMBS and Urban Institute. Note:Data as of March 2020.

Top 30 Holders of Ginnie Mae Mortgage Servicing Rights (MSRs), by UPB

41

Rank MSR Holder UPB ($ millions) Share Cumulative 

Share

1 Wells Fargo $215,105 12.7% 12.7%

2 Lakeview $212,016 12.5% 25.3%

3 PennyMac $185,860 11.0% 36.3%

4 Freedom Home Mortgage $128,625 7.6% 43.9%

5 Nationstar $97,684 5.5% 49.4%

6 Quicken Loans $62,619 3.7% 53.1%

7 US Bank $57,449 3.4% 56.5%

8 Carrington Mortgage $47,888 2.8% 59.3%

9 Newrez $44,774 2.6% 61.9%

10 USAA Federal Savings Bank $38,614 2.3% 64.2%

11 Truist Bank $32,288 1.9% 66.1%

12 Caliber Home Loans $30,358 1.8% 67.9%

13 Navy Federal Credit Union $28,966 1.7% 69.7%

14 Amerihome Mortgage $24,878 1.5% 71.1%

15 The Money Source $21,470 1.3% 72.4%

16 JP Morgan Chase $20,401 1.2% 73.6%

17 Midfirst Bank $20,017 1.2% 74.8%

18 Home Point Financial Corporation $19,489 1.2% 75.9%

19 M&T Bank $17,930 1.1% 77.0%

20 Roundpoint $16,957 1.0% 78.0%

21 Loan Depot $15,973 0.9% 78.9%

22 Guild Mortgage $15,856 0.9% 79.9%

23 Flagstar Bank $13,445 0.8% 80.7%

24 Citizens Bank $13,285 0.8% 81.5%

25 PHH Mortgage $13,176 0.8% 82.2%

26 Pingora $12,190 0.7% 83.0%

27 Planet Home Lending $11,078 0.7% 83.6%

28 Fifth Third Bank $10,423 0.6% 84.2%

29 Bank of America $10,417 0.6% 84.9%

30 PNC Bank $9,938 0.6% 85.4%

This table shows 30 largest owners of mortgage servicing rights (MSR) by UPB for Ginnie Mae securitizations. As 

of March 2020, over half (53.1 percent) of the Ginnie Mae MSRs are owned by the top six firms. The top 30 firms 

collectively own 85.4 percent. Eighteen of these 30 are non-depositories, the remaining 12 are depository 

institutions.
71.3%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

Dec-13

Mar-14

Jun-14

Sep-14

Dec-14

Mar-15

Jun-15

Sep-15

Dec-15

Mar-16

Jun-16

Sep-16

Dec-16

Mar-17

Jun-17

Sep-17

Dec-17

Mar-18

Jun-18

Sep-18

Dec-18

Mar-19

Jun-19

Sep-19

Dec-19

Mar-20

Share of outstanding loans by UPB

The composition of the largest owners of Ginnie Mae MSR has evolved quite a bit over time. In December 2013, 

Wells Fargo and JP Morgan Chase were the two largest owners of Ginnie Mae MSRs, holding $375 billion and 

$139 billion in servicing UPB respectively. Although Wells Fargo is still the largest player, its portfolio has shrunk 

to $215 billion. Lakeview, PennyMac, Freedom Home Mortgage, and Nationstar (all nonbanks) make up the 

remainder of the top five largest holders of MSRs, owning $212 billion, $186 billion, $129 billion, and $93 billion 

respectively as of March 2020. As of March 2020, nonbanks collectively owned servicing rights for 71.3 percent of 

all outstanding unpaid principal balance guaranteed by Ginnie Mae. In December 2013, the nonbank share was 

much smaller at 27.7 percent.

Holders of Ginnie Mae MSRs

42

Sources: eMBS and Urban Institute. Note: Data as of March 2020.

Share of Ginnie Mae MSRs held by Nonbanks

Top 5 MSR Holders: Outstanding Ginnie Mae Loans by UPB

$215,105

$185,860

$212,016

$128,625

$92,542

$0

$50,000

$100,000

$150,000

$200,000

$250,000

$300,000

$350,000

$400,000

$450,000

Dec-13

Mar-14

Jun-14

Sep-14

Dec-14

Mar-15

Jun-15

Sep-15

Dec-15

Mar-16

Jun-16

Sep-16

Dec-16

Mar-17

Jun-17

Sep-17

Dec-17

Mar-18

Jun-18

Sep-18

Dec-18

Mar-19

Jun-19

Sep-19

Dec-19

Mar-20

1. Wells Fargo 2. Lakeview

3. PennyMac 4. Freedom Home Mortgage

UPB ($ millions) 5. Nationstar
Prepayments

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

Oct-12 Apr-13 Oct-13 Apr-14 Oct-14 Apr-15 Oct-15 Apr-16 Oct-16 Apr-17 Oct-17 Apr-18 Oct-18 Apr-19 Oct-19 Apr-20

Constant Prepayment Rate (%)

2011 Issued 4.0 Coupon CPR

43

Fannie 2011 4.0 Coupon CPR Freddie 2011 4.0 Coupon CPR Ginnie II 2011 4.0 Coupon CPR

Sources: Credit Suisse and Urban Institute. Note:Data as of April 2020.

Sources: Credit Suisse and Urban Institute. Note: Data as of April 2020.

While prepayment speeds on all securities have risen since early 2019, the speed increase has been especially 

dramatic in early 2020. Note that aggregate Ginnie II speeds were lower than on GSE securities for the first time 

since early-2013. This reflected the sharp drop in interest rates as a result of the pandemic; GSE borrowers were 

more responsive to refinance than their Ginnie Mae counterparts. The faster Ginnie speeds from 2013-early 

2020 reflected the growing share of VA loans, which tend to prepay faster than either FHA or GSE loans. In 

addition, FHA puts fewer restrictions on streamlined refinances, and some of the upfront mortgage insurance 

premium can also be applied to the refinanced loan.

22%

21%

18%

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

40%

Apr 11 Oct 11 Apr 12 Oct 12 Apr 13 Oct 13 Apr 14 Oct 14 Apr 15 Oct 15 Apr 16 Oct 16 Apr 17 Oct 17 Apr 18 Oct 18 Apr 19 Oct 19 Apr 20

Constant prepayment rate (%)

Aggregate Prepayments

Fannie CPR Freddie CPR Ginnie I CPR Ginnie II CPR

33%

28%

17%
Prepayments

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

Aug-15 Dec-15 Apr-16 Aug-16 Dec-16 Apr-17 Aug-17 Dec-17 Apr-18 Aug-18 Dec-18 Apr-19 Aug-19 Dec-19 Apr-20

Constant Prepayment Rate (%)

2015 Issued 3.5 Coupon CPR

44

Fannie 2015 3.5 Coupon CPR Freddie 2015 3.5 Coupon CPR Ginnie II 2015 3.5 Coupon CPR

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

Oct-16 Apr-17 Oct-17 Apr-18 Oct-18 Apr-19 Oct-19 Apr-20

Constant Prepayment Rate (%)

2016 Issued 3.0 Coupon CPR

Fannie 2016 3.0 Coupon CPR Freddie 2016 3.0 Coupon CPR Ginnie II 2016 3.0 Coupon CPR

Sources: Credit Suisse and Urban Institute. Note: Data as of April 2020.

Sources: Credit Suisse and Urban Institute. Note: Data as of April 2020.

Speeds on the 2015 Ginnie II 3.5s and the 2016 Ginnie II 3.0s, the largest coupon cohorts of those vintage years, 

have been increasing since early 2019. The increase has been especially dramatic for GSE securities in early 2020 

due to a sharp drop in rates. Ginnie Mae securities have historically prepaid faster than their conventional 

counterparts. However in April 2020, the 2015 3.5s Ginnies were slower for the first time in years. The faster 

historical speeds on the Ginnie Mae cohorts reflect the fact that 2015 and 2016 Ginnie originations are more 

heavily VA loans than the 2011 origination shown on the preceding page. VA loans prepay faster than either 

FHA or GSE loans. The FHA streamlined programs are likely another contributor to the faster speeds.

31%

27%

33%

24%
Prepayments

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

Jan-18 Apr-18 Jul-18 Oct-18 Jan-19 Apr-19 Jul-19 Oct-19 Jan-20 Apr-20

Constant Prepayment Rate (%)

2018 Issued 4.0 Coupon CPR

Fannie 2018 4.0 Coupon CPR

45

Freddie 2018 4.0 Coupon CPR Ginnie II 2018 4.0 Coupon CPR

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

40%

45%

Jan-17 Apr-17 Jul-17 Oct-17 Jan-18 Apr-18 Jul-18 Oct-18 Jan-19 Apr-19 Jul-19 Oct-19 Jan-20 Apr-20

Constant Prepayment Rate (%)

2017 Issued 3.5 Coupon CPR

Fannie 2017 3.5 Coupon CPR Freddie 2017 3.5 Coupon CPR Ginnie II 2017 3.5 Coupon CPR

Sources: Credit Suisse and Urban Institute. Note: Data as of April 2020.

Sources: Credit Suisse and Urban Institute. Note: Data as of April 2020.

Ginnie Mae securities season more slowly than their conventional counterparts; they generally have lower 

prepayment in the early months but are more interest rate responsive thereafter. The charts below show the 

behavior of the 2017-issued 3.5s and the 2018-issued 4.0s, the largest coupon cohorts of those vintage years. 

Despite slower seasoning, 2017 Ginnie II 3.5s were prepaying faster than their conventional counterparts 

from late 2017 to March 2020, due primarily to fast VA prepayment speeds. Similarly, the 2018 Ginnie II 4.0s 

prepaid more slowly than their conventional counterparts until January of 2019. In 2019, speeds of 2018 4.0s 

and 2017 3.5s accelerated, and Ginnie II speeds accelerated more than their conventional counterparts. 

However, in early 2020 conventional speeds accelerated more than Ginnie speeds. Since March 2020, 

conventional speeds have exceeded those of the Ginnie cohorts.

40%

39%

32%

52%

40%
Prepayments

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

40%

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40

Constant Prepayment Rate (%)

2017 Issued 4.0 Coupon CPR, by Loan Age

46

Fannie 2017 4.0 Coupon CPR Freddie 2017 4.0 Coupon CPR Ginnie II 2017 4.0 Coupon CPR

Loan age

Sources: Credit Suisse and Urban Institute. Note: Data as of April 2020.

Sources: Credit Suisse and Urban Institute. Note: Data as of April 2020..

The charts below show the prepayment speeds by loan age for 2017 Ginnie II 4.0s and 2018 Ginnie II 4.5s—the 

cohorts 50 basis points above the largest coupon cohort for those years. Prepayment speeds on the 2017 

Ginnie II 4.0s jumped up sharply at the 7-9 month loan age, reflecting abuse of the VA Streamlined Refi 

program (IRRRL). The 2018 Ginnie II 4.5s do not show increased speeds until the 9-10 month point; reflecting 

both the effect of lower rates and the actions taken by both Ginnie Mae and the VA in H1 2018 to curb this 

abuse. Ginnie Mae actions have included suspending a few servicers whose VA prepayment speeds are 

especially high from selling VA loans into Ginnie Mae II securities, as well as rewriting the pooling 

requirements so that if loans that do not meet the seasoning requirement are refinanced, the new loan is 

ineligible for securitization. Ginnie’s latest action on this front became effective for securities issued on or 

after Nov 1 2019. It bars the securitization of over 90% LTV cash-out refinances into Ginnie I and Ginnie II 

pools (custom pools excepted). In addition, VA has implemented a net tangible benefit test, requiring the 

lender to show the borrower has obtained a benefit from the refinance. The recent experience of these 

cohorts indicates that, as a result of the cumulative actions taken in response to “churning” plus the 

acceleration of speeds in the conventional market in response to lower rates, Ginnie Mae and conventional 

speeds have largely converged.

36.2%

30.0%

29.0%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28

Constant Prepayment Rate (%)

2018 Issued 4.5 Coupon CPR, by Loan Age

Fannie 2018 4.5 Coupon CPR Freddie 2018 4.5 Coupon CPR Ginnie II 2018 4.5 Coupon CPR

Loan age

33.5%

30.8%

25.3%
Reverse Mortgage Volumes

$0.63

$0.0

$0.2

$0.4

$0.6

$0.8

$1.0

$1.2

$1.4

$1.6

Mar-20

Jul-12

Sep-12

Nov-12

Jan-13

Mar-13

May-13

Jul-13

Sep-13

Nov-13

Jan-14

Mar-14

May-14

Jul-14

Sep-14

Nov-14

Jan-15

Mar-15

May-15

Jul-15

Sep-15

Nov-15

Jan-16

Mar-16

May-16

Jul-16

Sep-16

Nov-16

Jan-17

Mar-17

May-17

Jul-17

Sep-17

Nov-17

Jan-18

Mar-18

May-18

Jul-18

Sep-18

Nov-18

Jan-19

Mar-19

May-19

Jul-19

Sep-19

Nov-19

Jan-20

$ Billions

HMBS Issuance Volume

$54.1

$0

$10

$20

$30

$40

$50

$60

Mar-20

Sep-12

Nov-12

Jan-13

Mar-13

May-13

Jul-13

Sep-13

Nov-13

Jan-14

Mar-14

May-14

Jul-14

Sep-14

Nov-14

Jan-15

Mar-15

May-15

Jul-15

Sep-15

Nov-15

Jan-16

Mar-16

May-16

Jul-16

Sep-16

Nov-16

Jan-17

Mar-17

May-17

Jul-17

Sep-17

Nov-17

Jan-18

Mar-18

May-18

Jul-18

Sep-18

Nov-18

Jan-19

Mar-19

May-19

Jul-19

Sep-19

Nov-19

Jan-20

$ Billions

HMBS Outstanding

Other Ginnie Mae Programs

Sources: Ginnie Mae and Urban Institute. Note: Data as of March 2020.

Sources: Ginnie Mae and Urban Institute. Note: Data as of March 2020.

Ginnie Mae reverse mortgage issuance has been volatile in recent months; after falling consecutively in August 

and September 2019, volume rose to $0.91 billion in December 2019 but it has fallen in the first three months of 

2020 to $0.63 billion. Issuance has been generally declining since early 2018 largely due to the implementation 

of the new, lower principal limit factors. In March 2020, outstanding reverse mortgage securities totaled $54.1 

billion, lower compared to recent past, reflecting a lower volume of new issuances relative to paydowns.

47
Multifamily Market

$2.2

$0.0

$0.5

$1.0

$1.5

$2.0

$2.5

$3.0

$3.5

$4.0

Mar-20

Sep-12

Nov-12

Jan-13

Mar-13

May-13

Jul-13

Sep-13

Nov-13

Jan-14

Mar-14

May-14

Jul-14

Sep-14

Nov-14

Jan-15

Mar-15

May-15

Jul-15

Sep-15

Nov-15

Jan-16

Mar-16

May-16

Jul-16

Sep-16

Nov-16

Jan-17

Mar-17

May-17

Jul-17

Sep-17

Nov-17

Jan-18

Mar-18

May-18

Jul-18

Sep-18

Nov-18

Jan-19

Mar-19

May-19

Jul-19

Sep-19

Nov-19

Jan-20

$ Billions

Ginnie Mae Multifamily MBS Issuance

$125.7

$0

$20

$40

$60

$80

$100

$120

$140

Mar-20

Sep-12

Nov-12

Jan-13

Mar-13

May-13

Jul-13

Sep-13

Nov-13

Jan-14

Mar-14

May-14

Jul-14

Sep-14

Nov-14

Jan-15

Mar-15

May-15

Jul-15

Sep-15

Nov-15

Jan-16

Mar-16

May-16

Jul-16

Sep-16

Nov-16

Jan-17

Mar-17

May-17

Jul-17

Sep-17

Nov-17

Jan-18

Mar-18

May-18

Jul-18

Sep-18

Nov-18

Jan-19

Mar-19

May-19

Jul-19

Sep-19

Nov-19

Jan-20

$ Billions

Ginnie Mae Multifamily MBS Outstanding

Other Ginnie Mae Programs

Sources: Ginnie Mae and Urban Institute. Note: Data as of March 2020.

Sources: Ginnie Mae and Urban Institute. Note: Data as of March 2020.

Ginnie Mae multifamily issuance volume in March 2020 totaled $2.2 billion, an increase from the past month.

Outstanding multifamily securities totaled $125.7 billion as of the third month of 2020.

48
Market Conditions

Sources: SIFMA and Urban Institute. Note: Data as of March 2020.

$318 

$699 

$45 

$0

$100

$200

$300

$400

$500

$600

$700

$800

1998 2001 2004 2007 2010 2013 2016 2019

49

$ Billions

Average Daily Fixed Income Trading Volume by Sector

SF Agency MBS trading vol ($B) Treasury trading volume ($B) Corporates trading volume ($B)

4.58%

4.19%

0.45% 0%

2%

4%

6%

8%

10%

12%

14%

1997 2000 2003 2006 2009 2012 2015 2018

Percent

Average Daily Turnover by Sector

Agency MBS Turnover Treasury Turnover Corporates Turnover

Agency MBS trading volume is $318 billion/day on average in March 2020, more robust than in the 2014-2019 

period, but still below the pre-crisis peak of $345 billion in 2008. Average daily trading volume for Treasuries 

now exceed the pre-crisis peak. Agency MBS turnover in 2020 YTD also has been higher than the 2014-2019 

period; in 2020, average daily MBS turnover was 4.58 percent, above the 2019 average of 3.67 percent. Note 

that agency MBS turnover in the first three months of 2020 has been higher than US Treasury turnover, a rare 

occurrence. Both average daily mortgage and Treasury turnover are down from their pre-crisis peaks. 

Corporate turnover is miniscule relative to either Agency MBS or Treasury turnover.

Sources: SIFMA and Urban Institute. Note: Data as of March 2020.
Market Conditions

$231.1

150

200

250

300

350

400

450

500

550

600

2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020

$ Billions

Repo Volume: Securities In

50

$91.1

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020

$ Billions

Dealer Net Positions: Federal Agency and GSE MBS

Sources: Federal Reserve Bank of New York Primary Dealer Statistics and Urban Institute. Note: Data as of April 2020.

Sources: Federal Reserve Bank of New York Primary Dealer Statistics and Urban Institute. Note: Data as of April 2020.

Dealer net positions are near their post-crisis high. By contrast, dealer gross positions have fallen 

dramatically. The volume of repurchase activity is up from the near 13-year low in 2017. The large decline 

through time reflects banks cutting back on lower margin businesses.
MBS Ownership

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

2007Q4 2008Q4 2009Q4 2010Q4 2011Q4 2012Q4 2013Q4 2014Q4 2015Q4 2016 Q4 2017 Q4 2018 Q4 2019 Q4

GSEs

Commercial Banks

Federal Reserve

Broker/Dealers

REITs

Other

Who owns Total Agency Debt?

Mutual Funds

Money Market and Pension Funds

Sources: Federal Reserve Flow of Funds and Urban Institute. Note: The “other” category includes primarily life insurance companies, state and 

local govts, households, and nonprofits. Data as of Q4 2019.

Credit Unions

Foreign Investors

The largest holders of agency debt (Agency MBS + Agency notes and bonds) include the Federal Reserve (15 

percent), commercial banks (20 percent) and foreign investors (12 percent). The broker/dealer and GSE shares 

are a fraction of what they once were.

Share of Total Agency Debt by Owner

51
MBS Ownership

Debt,

$9,833

household

mortgages,

Sources: Federal Reserve Flow of Funds and Urban Institute. Note: Data as of Q4 2019.

72.0%

50%

55%

60%

65%

70%

75%

2007Q4 2008Q4 2009Q4 2010Q4 2011Q4 2012Q4 2013Q4 2014Q4 2015Q4 2016 Q4 2017 Q4 2018 Q4 2019 Q4

Percent of MBS over Outstanding Agency Debt

MBS Share of Total Agency Debt

Sources: Federal Reserve Bank and Urban Institute. Note: Small domestic banks includes all domestically chartered commercial banks not 

included in the top 25. Data as of April 2020.

As Fannie and Freddie reduce the size of their retained portfolio, fewer agency notes and bonds are required to 

fund that activity, hence the MBS share of total agency debt increases. As of Q4 2019, the MBS share of total 

agency debt stood at 72.0 percent. Commercial banks are now the largest holders of Agency MBS. Out of their $2.2 

trillion in holdings as of the end of April 2020, $1.6 trillion was held by the top 25 domestic banks.

52

` Commercial Bank Holdings ($Billions) Week Ending

Mar-19 Sep-19 Oct-19 Nov-19 Dec-19 Jan-20 Feb-20 Mar-20 Apr 1 Apr 8 Apr 15 Apr 22

Largest 25 

Domestic Banks 1,418.8 1,495.7 1,509.8 1,529.2 1,509.7 1,528.9 1,538.4 1,587.6 1,625.1 1,608.1 1,618.8 1,637.0

Small Domestic 

Banks 488.8 511.9 516.4 521.1 531.3 535.9 539.3 547.3 555.3 554.8 547.8 546.8

Foreign Related 

Banks 25.8 35.0 37.1 37.6 37.8 38.3 39.3 44.4 47.0 47.9 45.6 46.5

Total, 

Seasonally

Adjusted 1,933.4 2,042.6 2,063.3 2,087.9 2,078.8 2,103.1 2,117.0 2,179.3 2,227.4 2,210.8 2,212.2 2,230.3
MBS Ownership

Debt,

$9,833

hous he old

mortgages,

Top Bank & Thrift Residential MBS Investors Total ($MM) GSE PT ($MM)

GNMA PT 

($MM)

Agency REMIC 

($MM)

Non-Agency 

($MM)

Market 

Share

1 Bank of America Corporation $331,072 $188,861 $131,989 $10,134 $88 16.7%

2 Wells Fargo & Company $252,535 $182,814 $65,936 $2,958 $827 12.7%

3 JP Morgan Chase & Co. $143,485 $93,693 $36,597 $205 $12,990 7.2%

4 U S. Bancorp. $93,914 $43,762 $29,495 $20,657 $1 4.7%

5 Charles Schwab Bank $89,040 $52,065 $19,196 $17,779 $0 4.5%

6 Citigroup Inc. $72,342 $61,511 $2,433 $6,564 $1,834 3.6%

7 Truist Bank $68,581 $23,908 $18,243 $26,062 $368 3.5%

8 Capital One Financial Corporation $63,600 $25,739 $14,676 $22,424 $761 3.2%

9 Bank of New York Mellon Corp. $55,954 $34,758 $4,184 $15,696 $1,316 2.8%

10 PNC Bank, National Association $52,962 $45,959 $2,748 $2,301 $1,953 2.7%

11 State Street Bank and Trust Company $42,248 $22,722 $10,143 $6,799 $2,584 2.1%

12 HSBC Bank USA, National Association $26,171 $5,054 $13,017 $8,098 $2 1.3%

13 Ally Bank $24,631 $15,300 $2,211 $4,340 $2,780 1.2%

14 Morgan Stanley $24,014 $13,923 $6,029 $4,062 $0 1.2%

15 E*TRADE Bank $21,952 $10,470 $3,212 $8,270 $0 1.1%

16 USAA Federal Savings Bank $20,933 $17,662 $2,420 $851 $0 1.1%

17 Citizens Bank, National Association $20,763 $10,416 $4,050 $5,635 $662 1.0%

18 KeyBank National Association $20,577 $1,469 $660 $18,449 $0 1.0%

19 TD Bank $18,203 $1,858 $184 $15,854 $306 0.9%

20 Regions Bank $16,248 $10,623 $3,310 $2,314 $1 0.8%

Total Top 20 $1,459,225 $862,567 $370,733 $199,451 $26,474 73.3%

Sources: Inside Mortgage Finance and Urban Institute. Note: Data as of Q4 2019.

Out of the $2.0 trillion in MBS holdings at banks and thrifts as of Q4 2019, $1.5 trillion was agency pass-throughs: 

$1.1 trillion in GSE pass-throughs and $427 billion in Ginnie Mae pass-throughs. Another $429 billion was agency 

CMOs, while non-agency holdings totaled $40 billion. In Q4, 2019, MBS holding at banks and thrifts increased for 

the fifth consecutive quarter, although the increase was smaller than in the previous 4 quarters. The increase was 

almost entirely in GSE pass-throughs, Ginnie Mae pass-through holdings were flat.

53

All Banks & Thrifts ($Billions)

Total Agency MBS PT GSE PT GNMA PT Agency CMO Private MBS PT Private CMO

2000 $683.90 $392.85 $234.01 $84.26 $198.04 $21.57 $71.43

2001 $810.50 $459.78 $270.59 $109.53 $236.91 $37.62 $76.18

2002 $912.36 $557.43 $376.11 $101.46 $244.98 $20.08 $89.88

2003 $982.08 $619.02 $461.72 $75.11 $236.81 $19.40 $106.86

2004 $1,113.89 $724.61 $572.40 $49.33 $208.18 $20.55 $160.55

2005 $1,139.68 $708.64 $566.81 $35.92 $190.70 $29.09 $211.25

2006 $1,207.09 $742.28 $628.52 $31.13 $179.21 $42.32 $243.28

2007 $1,236.00 $678.24 $559.75 $31.58 $174.27 $26.26 $357.24

2008 $1,299.76 $820.12 $638.78 $100.36 $207.66 $12.93 $259.04

2009 $1,345.74 $854.40 $629.19 $155.00 $271.17 $7.53 $212.64

2010 $1,433.38 $847.13 $600.80 $163.13 $397.30 $7.34 $181.61

2011 $1,566.88 $917.10 $627.37 $214.81 $478.82 $3.28 $167.70

2012 $1,578.86 $953.76 $707.87 $242.54 $469.27 $17.16 $138.67

2013 $1,506.60 $933.73 $705.97 $231.93 $432.60 $26.11 $114.15

2014 $1,539.32 $964.16 $733.71 $230.45 $449.90 $20.33 $104.94

2015 $1,643.56 $1,115.40 $823.10 $292.30 $445.39 $11.14 $71.63

2016 $1,736.93 $1,254.13 $930.67 $323.46 $419.80 $7.40 $55.60

1Q17 $1,762.38 $1,280.63 $950.72 $329.91 $419.34 $7.03 $55.39

2Q17 $1,798.66 $1,320.59 $985.12 $335.47 $417.89 $6.38 $53.79

3Q17 $1,838.93 $1,364.75 $1,012.89 $351.86 $418.08 $5.65 $50.45

4Q17 $1,844.15 $1,378.53 $1,010.83 $367.70 $413.97 $4.63 $47.01

1Q18 $1,809.98 $1,352.28 $991.57 $360.71 $412.37 $3.92 $41.37

2Q18 $1,806.58 $1,345.80 $976.92 $368.88 $414.41 $7.45 $38.92

3Q18 $1,794.39 $1,339.72 $966.52 $373.21 $416.20 $2.42 $36.04

4Q18 $1,814.97 $1,361.00 $980.56 $380.43 $419.59 $2.69 $34.69

1Q19 $1,844.99 $1,385.10 $1,001.61 $383.49 $422.18 $3.06 $34.65

2Q19 $1,907.13 $1,445.91 $1,037.93 $407.97 $421.56 $2.90 $36.76

3Q19 $1,975.78 $1,506.92 $1,079.82 $427.10 $428.69 $4.74 $35.44

4Q19 $1,985.38 $1,516.26 $1,089.41 $426.85 $428.99 $4.62 $35.52 

Bank and Thrift Residential MBS Holdings
Sources: SIFMA and Treasury International Capital (TIC). Note: Data as of January 2020.

16.5%

10.0%

11.0%

12.0%

13.0%

14.0%

15.0%

16.0%

17.0%

Jul-12

Oct-12

Jan-13

Apr-13

Jul-13

Oct-13

Jan-14

Apr-14

Jul-14

Oct-14

Jan-15

Apr-15

Jul-15

Oct-15

Jan-16

Apr-16

Jul-16

Oct-16

Jan-17

Apr-17

Jul-17

Oct-17

Jan-18

Apr-18

Jul-18

Oct-18

Jan-19

Apr-19

Jul-19

Oct-19

Jan-20

Percent of Agency MBS Owned by Foreigners

Foreign Share of Agency MBS

MBS Ownership

54

$1,140.9

$487.1

$653.7

0

200

400

600

800

1,000

1,200

Jan-14

Mar-14

May-14

Jul-14

Sep-14

Nov-14

Jan-15

Mar-15

May-15

Jul-15

Sep-15

Nov-15

Jan-16

Mar-16

May-16

Jul-16

Sep-16

Nov-16

Jan-17

Mar-17

May-17

Jul-17

Sep-17

Nov-17

Jan-18

Mar-18

May-18

Jul-18

Sep-18

Nov-18

Jan-19

Mar-19

May-19

Jul-19

Sep-19

Nov-19

Jan-20

$ Billions

Monthly Agency MBS Holdings by Foreigners

Total Agency MBS Held by Foreigners Foreign Official MBS Foreign Private MBS

Sources: Treasury International Capital (TIC) and Urban Institute. Note: Data as of January 2020. In December 2017, there was a data 

correction that moved about $120 billion from privately held U.S. agency bonds to officially held U.S. agency bonds; this resulted in a series 

break at December 2017 in the split between the portion held by foreign private and the portion held by foreign official.

Foreign investors held 16.5 percent of agency MBS in January 2020, up from a low of 12.0 percent in July 2014. 

For the month of January 2020, this represents $1.14 trillion in Agency MBS, $487 billion held by foreign 

private institutions and $654 billion held by foreign institutions.
MBS Ownership

Agency MBS+ Agency Debt

Agency MBS Only (Estimates)

Sources :Treasury International Capital (TIC) and Urban Institute. 

Note: *calculated based on June 2018 report with amount asset backed per country. Revised to include Top 10 holders of MBS listed as of June 

2018. Monthly data as of January 2020.

The largest foreign holders of Agency MBS are Japan, Taiwan, and China; these three comprise over 70 percent 

of all foreign holdings. Between June 2018 and January 2020, we estimate China has increased their agency 

MBS holdings by $59.9 billion, Japan has increased their holdings by $48.7 billion and Taiwan has increased 

their holdings by $13.6 billion.

Levelof Holdings ($Millions)* Change in Holdings ($Millions)*

Country Jun-18 Sep-18 Dec-18 Mar-19 Jun-19 Sep-19 Dec-19 Jan-20

Q3 

2018

Q4 

2018

Q1 

2019

Q2 

2019

Q3 

2019

Q4

2019 Jan-20

Japan 257,547 254,511 271,999 284,322 296,445 311,043 305,327 305,662 -3,036 17,488 12,323 12,123 14,598 -5,716 333

Taiwan 250,009 250,639 261,262 265,992 265,520 263,011 261,740 263,586 630 10,623 4,730 -472 -2,509 -1,271 1,846

China 180,635 190,203 188,921 208,540 227,312 233,778 231,742 239,880 9,568 -1,282 19,619 18,772 6,466 -2,036 8,138

Ireland 46,817 48,220 48,020 46,623 44,850 41,374 38,633 38,446 1,403 -200 -1,397 -1,773 -3,476 -2,741 -202

Luxembourg 36,372 38,800 50,869 44,561 46,328 46,606 38,977 39,349 2,428 12,069 -6,308 1,767 278 -7,629 345

South Korea 44,039 43,944 44,794 42,604 42,669 41,309 40,542 40,411 -95 850 -2,190 65 -1,360 -767 -287

Bermuda 27,866 27,610 28,777 28,450 29,286 29,183 33,897 28,133 -256 1,167 -327 836 -103 4,714 -5,764

Cayman 

Islands 31,017 31,638 31,398 30,374 30,819 29,432 31,036 31,292 621 -240 -1,024 445 -1,387 1,604 256

Malaysia 12,710 12,874 12,671 12,395 12,108 15,585 16,600 16,586 164 -203 -276 -287 3,477 1,015 -14

Netherlands 11,995 12,229 9,601 9,400 13,548 10,546 10,898 10,875 234 -2,628 -201 4,148 -3,002 352 -27

Rest of World 125,197 128,807 128,323 130,053 128,049 135,460 152,136 185,722 3,610 -484 1,730 -2,004 7,411 16,676 33,763

Total 1,024,200 1,039,475 1,076,635 1,103,314 1,136,934 1,157,327 1,161,528 1,199,942 15,275 37,160 26,679 33,620 20,393 4,201 38,387

55

Levelof Holdings ($Millions)* Change in Holdings ($Millions)*

Country Jun-18 Sep-18 Dec-18 Mar-19 Jun-19 Sep-19 Dec-19 Jan-20

Q3 

2018

Q4 

2018

Q1 

2019

Q2 

2019

Q3 

2019

Q4

2019 Jan-20

Japan 253,972 250,851 268,150 280,394 293,081 307,665 302,201 302,669 -3,121 17,299 12,244 12,687 14,584 -5,464 468

Taiwan 249,773 250,397 261,008 265,733 265,268 262,795 261,533 263,388 624 10,611 4,725 -464 -2,474 -1,261 1,855

China 176,345 185,811 184,302 203,827 223,160 229,720 227,988 236,289 9,466 -1,509 19,525 19,334 6,559 -1,732 8,301

Ireland 37,832 39,021 38,346 36,751 35,858 32,870 30,786 30,924 1,189 -676 -1,594 -893 -2,988 -2,084 138

Luxembourg 34,012 36,384 48,328 41,967 45,567 44,400 36,939 37,373 2,372 11,944 -6,361 3,600 -1,166 -7,462 434

South Korea 33,064 32,708 32,977 30,546 32,031 31,086 31,094 31,223 -356 269 -2,431 1,485 -945 9 129

Bermuda 24,969 24,644 25,658 25,267 26,316 26,443 31,362 25,708 -325 1,014 -391 1,049 127 4,919 -5,654

Cayman 

Islands 24,384 24,847 24,256 23,086 24,436 23,157 25,232 25,739 463 -591 -1,170 1,349 -1,279 2,075 507

Malaysia 12,319 12,474 12,250 11,965 11,729 15,215 16,258 16,259 155 -224 -285 -236 3,486 1,043 1

Netherlands 11,437 11,658 9,000 8,787 13,010 10,020 10,414 10,408 221 -2,658 -213 4,223 -2,990 394 -6

Rest of World 95,510 98,414 96,359 97,440 98,964 107,208 125,982 160,870 2,904 -2,056 1,082 1,524 8,244 18,774 34,888

Total 953,612 967,209 1,000,632 1,025,763 1,069,421 1,090,579 1,099,788 1,140,850 13,597 33,423 25,131 43,658 21,158 9,209 41,062
0

50

100

150

200

250

300

350

Jul-09

Nov-09

Mar-10

Jul-10

Nov-10

Mar-11

Jul-11

Nov-11

Mar-12

Jul-12

Nov-12

Mar-13

Jul-13

Nov-13

Mar-14

Jul-14

Nov-14

Mar-15

Jul-15

Nov-15

Mar-16

Jul-16

Nov-16

Mar-17

Jul-17

Nov-17

Mar-18

Jul-18

Nov-18

Mar-19

Jul-19

Nov-19

Mar-20

$ Billions

Total Fed Absorption

Gross Issuance Total Fed Purchases

MBS Ownership

0

50

100

150

200

250

Mar-12

Sep-12

Mar-13

Sep-13

Mar-14

Sep-14

Mar-15

Sep-15

Mar-16

Sep-16

Mar-17

Sep-17

Mar-18

Sep-18

Mar-19

Sep-19

Mar-20

$ Billions

Fed Absorption of GSE MBS

Gross Issuance Total Fed Purchases

Sources: eMBS, Federal Reserve Bank of New York and Urban Institute. Note: Data as of March 2020.

Sources: eMBS, Federal Reserve Bank of New York and Urban 

Institute. Note: Data as of March 2020.

Sources: eMBS, Federal Reserve Bank of New York and Urban Institute. 

Note: Data as of March 2020.

56

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Mar-12

Sep-12

Mar-13

Sep-13

Mar-14

Sep-14

Mar-15

Sep-15

Mar-16

Sep-16

Mar-17

Sep-17

Mar-18

Sep-18

Mar-19

Sep-19

Mar-20

$ Billions

Fed Absorption of Ginnie Mae MBS

Gross Issuance Total Fed Purchases

On March 23, 2020, in response to the market dislocations caused by the coronavirus pandemic, the Fed 

announced they would purchase Treasuries and agency MBS in an amount necessary to support smooth 

functioning markets. This resulted in the largest single month of Fed purchases ever—in March 2020, the Fed 

purchased a total or $292.2 billion, corresponding to a Fed absorption of gross issuance of 178.2 percent. Prior to 

this, the Fed was winding down its MBS portfolio. From Oct 2014 to Sep 2017, the Fed ended its Great Recession 

era MBS purchase program, but was reinvesting funds from mortgages and agency debt into the mortgage 

market, absorbing 20-30 percent of agency gross issuance. The portfolio wind down started in October 2017, 

with the Fed allowing a pre-established amount of MBS to run off each month. From Oct 2017 to Sep 2018, the 

Fed was still reinvesting, but by less than the prepayments and repayments. In Oct 2018, the amount of MBS 

permitted to run off each month hit the $20 billion cap, leading to very small purchase volume between Q4 2018 

and February 2020.
Disclosures 

All the information contained in this document is as of date Indicated unless otherwise noted. The 

information provided does not constitute investment advice and it should not be relied on as such. 

All information has been obtained from sources believed to be reliable, but its accuracy is not 

guaranteed. The views expressed in this material are the views of the staff of the Urban Institute's 

Housing Finance Policy Center and State Street Global Advisors as of May 22nd, 2020 and are 

subject to change based on market and other conditions. The views should not be attributed to 

the Urban Institute, its trustees, or its funders. 

This document contains certain statements that may be deemed forward-looking statements. 

Please note that any such statements are not guarantees of any future performance and actual 

results or developments may differ materially from those projected. 

© 2020 State Street Corporation. All Rights Reserved. 

Tracking Code: 3098535.1.1.AM.INST

Expiration Date: 05/31/2021