Authors:

  • David Scharfstein
  • Adi Sunderam

Excerpt

Concentration in Mortgage Lending, Refinancing Activity, and Mortgage Rates. David S. Scharfstein, Adi Sunderam, June 2013, Paper. "We present evidence that high concentration in local mortgage lending reduces the sensitivity of mortgage rates and refinancing activity to mortgage-backed security (MBS) yields. A decrease in MBS yields is typically associated with greater refinancing activity and lower rates on new mortgages. However, this effect is dampened in counties with concentrated mortgage markets. We isolate the direct effect of mortgage market concentration and rule out alternative explanations based on borrower..." Link Verified October 12, 2014