Mortgage credit availability decreased in December on reduced affordable, low-down-payment loan programs, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.
The Mortgage Credit Availability Index fell 2.4% to 124.3 for the month of December. A decrease indicates a tightening of lending standards; an increase indicates a loosening of credit.
The index is calculated using loan program data from Ellie Mae's AllRegs Market Clarity product. In March 2012, the MCAI was benchmarked to 100.
The conventional MCAI reported the greatest tightening of a 4.8% decrease
