U.S. banks and thrifts reported $2.52 trillion in one- to four-family mortgage loans at the end of the second quarter, up 1.3% quarter over quarter and 1.6% year over year.
At the same time, credit quality improved. Total delinquent one- to four-family mortgage loans dropped 15.9% year over year to $68.08 billion at the end of June, and mortgages in nonaccrual status plummeted 17.7% to $24.54 billion.
During the first half of 2019, the Federal Housing Finance Agency's house price index rose 5.2% year over year. The index’s growth rate has topped 4% every year since 2013.

Mortgage rates declined from late-2018 levels during the first six months of 2019, and the trend is likely to continue in the wake of the Federal Reserve's second consecutive rate cut Sept. 18.
U.S. housing sales activity remained subdued in June despite lower mortgage rates, with existing home sales dropping 1.7% month over month, according to the National Association of Realtors. The lower sales were attributed to an imbalance in supply and demand for mid- to lower-priced homes, as limited inventory drove house prices higher, according to National Association of Realtors Chief Economist Lawrence Yun.

Wells Fargo & Co., the largest one- to four-family mortgage lender among U.S. banks, saw mortgage loans rise 0.5% year over year to $344.30 billion as of June 30. The bank’s nonaccruing mortgage loans accounted for 1.14% of its total one- to four-family mortgage portfolio, which was significantly higher than the industry median of 0.32%.

