Creditors are more willing to offer loans to subprime lenders so far this year, Equifax announced Monday.
First-mortgage originations to subprime borrowers have risen by 30.5% in the first five months of 2015, compared to the same period last year. Home equity installment loans rose by 29.5% and home equity lines of credit were up 20.4% for those same borrowers, with credit scores below 620.
But according to Equifax's National Consumer Credit Trends Report, HELOCs are still a rare option for subprime borrowers, who faced a higher credit limit for such loans in May 2015 compared to the same month last year.
Moreover, the report shows that lenders have not shaken off their mistrust for subprime borrowers since the Great Recession. The proportion of first-mortgage originations offered to borrowers with low credit scores has seen a steep decline since 2008, from 10% to 4.6%, so far this year.
