Single Millennial Women More Likely to Leverage FHA Loans Than Men According to Ellie Mae Millennial Tracker

According to the December Ellie Mae Millennial Tracker™, 41 percent of single female primary homebuyers leveraged FHA loans in the month, compared to 35 percent of married female primary homebuyers. Thirty-eight percent of single male homebuyers utilized FHA loans compared to 28 percent of married men. Women in total selected FHA loans more than men during the month of December, with 39 percent of closed loans as FHAs compared to men who utilized FHAs on 32 percent of closed loans.

Both male and female millennials were more likely to purchase homes in the middle of the country when pursuing a home loan in December, with top Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs) by percentage of millennial loans closed including Jasper, Ind., Fort Leonard Wood, Mo., Odessa, Tex. and Owensboro, Ky. These MSAs all saw 59 percent or more of closed loans falling within the millennial category. When sorted by population, top MSAs included St. Louis, Mo.-Ill. and Houston, Tex. in December. Looking at 2016 as a whole, Owensboro, Ky. was listed as the top MSA for millennials, representing 49 percent of closed loans.

“Last year we saw millennials begin to enter the housing market in force. While life events such as marriage or starting a family often influence borrowers’ decisions to purchase a home, others see homeownership as an opportunity to build equity. As a result, we saw many single female borrowers, pursue homeownership in 2016,” said Joe Tyrrell, executive vice president of corporate strategy at Ellie Mae. “We’re on the cusp of a new era, with potential for an influx of millennials to begin exercising their purchase power.”

FICO scores on all closed loans by millennials in December averaged 724, on par with scores that were seen throughout 2016, hovering in the low 720s. The average FICO score for millennials refinancing in December was 748, while the average FICO score of those who closed on a purchase loan held steady from the previous month at 746.

Ellie Mae® (NYSE:ELLI) is a leading provider of innovative on-demand software solutions and services for the residential mortgage industry. The Ellie Mae Millennial Tracker is an interactive online tool that provides access to up-to-date demographic data about this new generation of homebuyers. It mines data from a robust sampling of approximately 75 percent of all closed mortgages dating back to 2014 that were initiated on Ellie Mae’s Encompass® all-in-one mortgage management solution. Given the size of this sample and Ellie Mae’s market share, it is a strong proxy of millennial mortgage indicators across the country. Searches can be tailored by borrower geography, age, gender, marital status, FICO score and amortization type.

For more information, visit http://elliemae.com/millennial-tracker

About the Ellie Mae Millennial Tracker

The Ellie Mae Millennial Tracker focuses on millennial mortgage applications during specific time periods. Ellie Mae defines millennials as applicants born between the years 1980 and 1999. New data is updated on the first Monday of every month for two months prior.

The Millennial Tracker is a subset of our Origination Insight Report, which details aggregated, anonymized data pulled from Ellie Mae’s Encompass origination platform. Additional information regarding the Origination Insight Report can be found at http://elliemae.com/resources/origination-insight-reports. News organizations have the right to reuse this data, provided that Ellie Mae, Inc. is credited as the source.

About Ellie Mae

Ellie Mae (NYSE:ELLI) is a leading provider of innovative on-demand software solutions and services for the residential mortgage industry. Mortgage lenders of all sizes use Ellie Mae’s Encompass® all-in-one mortgage management solution, Mavent Compliance Service, and AllRegs research, reference and education resources to improve compliance, loan quality and efficiency across the entire mortgage lifecycle. Visit EllieMae.com or call (877) 355-4362 to learn more.

© 2017 Ellie Mae, Inc. Ellie Mae®, Encompass®, AllRegs®, the Ellie Mae logo and other trademarks or service marks of Ellie Mae, Inc. appearing herein are the property of Ellie Mae, Inc. or its subsidiaries. All rights reserved. Other company and product names may be trademarks or copyrights of their respective owners.

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