LenderLogix Q3 2024 Homebuyer Intelligence Report Data: Homebuyers Hold Steady And “Wait For The Rate”

LenderLogix, a provider of mortgage point-of-sale and automation software for banks, credit unions, independent mortgage banks, and brokers, released the Homebuyer Intelligence Report, a quarterly summary of insights into borrower behavior during the home-buying process based on data collected by the LenderLogix suite of tools. The latest report covers data collected during the pre-approval and borrower application process in the third quarter (Q3) of 2024. Here’s what the report said:

Pre-Approvals

In Q3 2024, borrowers generated 49,392 pre-approval letters through LenderLogix’s QuickQual pre-approval platform, a 15% decrease from Q2 2024. The average number of pre-approved borrowers per loan officer decreased slightly from 29 in Q2 2024 to 28.5 in Q3 2024.

The average pre-approval letter loan amount increased by 26% from $308,681 in Q2 to $388,215 in Q3, fueled by a 23% increase in the average sales price from $362,780 to $446,390. The average down payment shrank marginally from 15% in Q2 to 13% in Q3. 

Conventional loans remained the most popular for pre-approved borrowers, staying consistent at 76%. All categories held steady through Q3, with FHA pre-approvals barely climbing from 17.8% to 17.9%, while VA (4%) and USDA (1%) maintained their share from Q2 to Q3 2024.

“With the Fed’s announcement that rates will likely drop again, it’s not surprising to see steady-to-slow developments as homebuyers wait for the rate,” said LenderLogix Co-Founder and CEO Patrick O’Brien.

Borrower Conversion

Of the borrowers using QuickQual in Q2 2024, the average number of days between pre-approval and loan submission increased nearly 7% from 85 to 91 days in Q3. The longest duration between pre-approval and application decreased by ten days from 603 in Q2 to 593 in Q3. The conversion rate from borrowers using QuickQual to loan application decreased slightly from 58% to 56% in Q3. Borrowers generated an average of eight pre-approval letters before converting.

“Homebuyers’ behavior has a lot to do with expectations, and we are certainly seeing that with our holding pattern,” O’Brien noted. “With Fannie Mae signaling this fall that its 30-year fixed rate will land at 6.2% by the end of the year, bringing it in line with the MBA’s expected rate before both glide in below 6% in 2025, we can see the effect of anticipation. Nonetheless, there are those who have found what they are looking for now, and they know those lowered rates will mean more demand that could place them in a bidding war.”