THDA Mortgage Report: Calendar Year 2024

The high mortgage rates of 2023 strained housing markets and slowed down home sales, and the expectation that the Federal Reserve Bank would cut interest rates in 2024 did not manifest. Unexpectedly, 2024 ushered in fluctuating mortgage rates that created widespread uncertainty in the broader housing market. THDA’s Great Choice Home Loan programs were not immune to the fluctuations of the housing markets in 2024. High home prices, interest rates, and broader market volatility continue to adversely impact potential homeowners, particularly those eligible for THDA mortgages.

[February 2025]

2023 Home Loan Trends in Tennessee (using HMDA Data)

This report offers a comprehensive analysis of data collected as a part of the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act. The 2023 market was characterized by a significant decline in refinance lending and a marked reduction in home purchase loan origination, primarily attributed to elevated home prices and interest rates. The overall volume of mortgage originations has reached its lowest level in the past two decades, specifically since 2004. Despite some advancements in mortgage accessibility for Hispanic borrowers, racial disparities in loan approvals and denials persist, with Black borrowers experiencing higher denial rates and a greater dependence on more expensive loan products. 

[November 2024]

2023 Investments and Impacts Report

This report develops a comprehensive framework to estimate the economic impact of THDA activities in providing safe, sound, affordable housing options to households of low- and moderate-income. We reviewed THDA programs, including loans and grants to determine the scope and monetary flows of each program's activities.

[May 2024]

An Analysis of Investor Purchases of Single-Family Homes in Davidson County, 2018-2022

Nationally, the phenomenon of investor purchases of single-family homes has received great attention. This research note explores the extent of this phenomenon within Davidson County utilizing data from the Davidson County Assessor's Office on home sales from 2018 - 2022.

[May 2024]

50 Years of THDA's Single Family Homeownership Program

Financing mortgages for first-time homebuyers of
moderate/middle incomes, primarily, was the founding purpose of the Tennessee Housing Development Agency and it remains our principal business. Since we financed the first THDA mortgage loan in 1974, we have financed over $10 billion in mortgages and helped over 134,000 Tennessee
households acquire their piece of the American Dream.

In this report, we recount 50 years of THDA activity within Tennessee's homeownership market. Learn more about THDA's legacy, impact, and lessons learned.

[April 2024]

2023 Tennessee Housing Market at a Glance

Safe, sound, affordable housing options are essential for Tennesseans’ quality of life, including expanded education opportunities, stronger health outcomes, and increased economic mobility. In the four years since the release of the last Housing Market at a Glance Report, Tennessee has experienced a great deal of change in how and where people live. Following the COVID-19 pandemic, domestic and interstate migration as well as shifts in the economic functions of our world have reshaped the current housing market. For these reasons and more, the Housing Market at a Glance examines the current state of housing in Tennessee by highlighting the key trends in the state’s demographics, housing market, and other issues. Consider pairing this analysis with THDA’s Housing Indicators.

[November 2023]

Mortgage Costs by Race/Ethnicity in Tennessee: Analysis from 2018-2021 HMDA Data

This brief utilizes HMDA data from 2018 to 2021 to better understand how the costs of mortgages as measured by interest rates, rate spread, high-priced mortgages, and total loan costs have changed over this period and how they vary for borrowers of different racial and ethnic backgrounds. We find that almost all borrowers benefitted from declining costs over this period. However, Black, Hispanic, and low to moderate income (LMI) borrowers continued to rely heavily on non-conventional mortgages. Furthermore, they experienced higher relative costs in comparison to other groups for the mortgages they did acquire. As a result, they often paid higher overall and higher relative costs by loan amounts compared to their counterparts.

[May 2023]

Refinance Loan Trends in Tennessee: Analysis from 2018-2021 HMDA Data

This brief utilizes HMDA data from 2018 to 2021 to better understand how refinance loans were utilized by Tennesseans before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite the benefits of refinancing one’s mortgage, we find that, in Tennessee, refinance loan originations were significantly lower for Black and low or moderate income (LMI) homeowners than their counterparts. We also find that denial rates alone are not a sufficient explanation of the racial disparities in refinance loan originations.

[April 2023]