It took 2 months to wipe out 12 months of equity, this is correct. 
What you describe as tail end of panic is called a "bull trap" research it. 
DEFINITION of 'Bull Trap'
A false signal indicating that a declining trend has reversed and is heading upwards when, in fact, the security will continue to decline.
 http://www.investopedia.com/terms/b/bulltrap.asp#ixzz4nHAgSNns 

It's not only the interest that matters it's also the lose of liquidity in the market. 
Home Capital and all their peers are no longer lending just renewing. 
The worst part about a home purchase today is that even if you put down 20% the bank may only value the home you bought at 85% of what you paid and loan you 80% of that amount. On 1M dollars that means they will only lend you 
$680,000 because they know equity is dropping and they need a "margin of safety".  
The fact also remains: no investor will pay 10% transaction cost(5% on purchase 5% on sale) for an asset with a negative cash flow which is losing value.