“Lenders made $226 billion of mortgages in the period, the smallest quarterly amount since 1997 and less than one-third of the 2006 average, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. Lending has been tumbling since mid-2013 when mortgage rates jumped about a percentage point after the Federal Reserve said it might taper stimulus spending. A surge in all-cash purchases to more than 40 percent has kept housing prices rising, squeezing more Americans out of the market. JPMorgan said it reduced the number of jobs at its mortgage unit by 30 percent, or 14,000 positions, since the start of last year. Wells Fargo got rid of 1,100 jobs in its residential mortgage business.”
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