The 130-members of Lenders One are reporting very heavy volumes of refinancings, according to Scott Stern, the chief executive of the mortgage cooperative, who is already looking ahead for another refinancing surge."We expect continued heavy volume at least through June," Mr. Stern said. But he is hoping the Federal Reserve succeeds in driving mortgage rates even lower. "We think another $1 trillion in refinancing volume could come if mortgage rates drop into the 4.25% and 4.5% range," the CEO told MortgageWire. He noted that his members sold nearly $10 billion in mortgages to the coop's preferred investors in the first quarter and refinancings comprised 77% of originations. "The only thing slowing down refinances is warehouse line capacity. That is a problem," Mr. Stern said. "We could be refinancing more loans, if there was more warehouse lending capacity."
