Market Studies

The higher risk for first-time buyers can be attributed in large part to risk layering, according to AEI. In March, 68 percent of mortgages for first time buyers had a combined LTV of 95 percent of higher and 96 percent of those mortgages had a 30-year term.

Sharga also noted that while the 5.31 million target number for April is up both month-over-month and year-over-year, a truly healthy housing market would be on a pace for about six million in existing home sales annually. He said the annual rate of existing home sales will probably continue at about the five million range for the next year.

The composite index, which includes first and second mortgage defaults as well as those on bank cards and auto loans, fell from 1.12 percent in February down to 1.05 percent in March. The first mortgage default rate declined for the second straight month, falling eight basis points down to 0.92 percent.

Overall, 53.5 percent of investors surveyed said they preferred flipping, while 44.8 percent said they intended to rent the houses they purchased. A larger portion of real estate investors (55 percent) and investors working on behalf of another investor (66.3 percent) said they intended to flip, while a majority of investors making a one-time purchase (66.9 percent) said they intended to rent.

In the ESR's April 2015 Economic Outlook released Monday, the projection for economic growth in 2015 held steady at 2.8 percent despite a downward adjustment for Q1 growth from the prior forecast. However, Fannie Mae is expecting some volatility in financial markets due to the Federal Reserve's expected interest rate increase later in the year.

The districts of Richmond, Chicago, and Dallas reported that residential mortgage demand, particularly in the area of refinancings, grew during the period, while New York reported steady growth. Delinquencies were down or at low levels in New York and Cleveland, while Philadelphia and Kansas City bankers expressed confidence in the quality of their loan portfolios, according to the Fed.

Also, lower gains in private equity partially offset the increase in fee revenue in asset management and mortgage banking Chase received in Q1. Chase's net interest income for Q1 was $11 billion, which was relatively unchanged from Q1 2014.

Economists at both Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have stuck to their predictions that housing will recover in 2015 despite receiving recent reports of slower-than-expected economic growth in the first quarter, including job gains that fell well short of expectations in March. "We remain comfortable with our call that the Fed funds rate lift-off will occur in September," Fannie Mae chief economist Doug Duncan said last week. "The setback in the hiring picture is in line with consumer sentiment regarding the housing market from the Fannie Mae National Housing Survey."

The authors found that about 31 percent of first-time buyers took such advice, regardless of income, while more than half of those who earn less than $75,000 a year sought referral advice. About 7 percent above that income line sought advice.

While the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported real wage growth of 22 cents year-over-year in February up to $10.54 per hour, researchers from the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland have conducted their own study and discovered that real compensation growth and real wage growth since the end of the recession are slower compared with other recoveries.