In its August 2015 Quarterly Report on Household Debt and Credit (the " Report"), the Federal Reserve Bank of New York confirms that new mortgage loans to subprime borrowers remain incredibly low, with just 8 percent of new mortgages given to borrowers whose credit scores were below 660. According to a blog post accompanying the Report, "Underwriting standards for mortgages have loosened only slightly in the years since the Great Recession."

The Report found that the median Equifax Risk Score for a mortgage borrower was 764 for the Second Quarter of 2015. This figure is well above the median score of 707 in 2006 and 698 in 2000. And while the percentage of loans originated to subprime borrowers in the second quarter appears low, it remains higher than the 5.8 percent low seen in the first quarter of 2011. The percentage of new mortgage loans to subprime borrowers hit its pinnacle in 2007 at 26 percent.

Unsurprisingly, borrowers with excellent credit scores of 780 or higher made up nearly 50 percent of those receiving new mortgage loans in the second quarter. Borrowers with credit scores between 720 and 779 received over 20 percent of mortgage origination loans.

New York Fed Senior Vice President, Wilbert van de Klaauw, noted in an August 13, 2015 press release that "persistently tight underwriting standards imply that new mortgages continue to be originated predominately to the most credit worthy borrowers."

Although mortgage loan origination for subprime borrowers appears to remain tight, those who already have mortgages have largely skirted default. The 90-day delinquency rate on mortgages has dropped to 2.51 percent in the second quarter. This is the lowest level seen since the fourth quarter of 2007, according to the Fed. Van de Klaauw observed that, "the low rates of delinquency and new foreclosures reflect the higher quality of outstanding mortgage debt and improved economic conditions."

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