They found that districts with the highest level of mortgage rejections in 1996, the benchmark year, were those where subsequently there was a disproportionately large increase in the rate of approved mortgages in the boom years between 2001 and 2005.Could it have been that the economic prospects improved in these neighbourhoods, explaining the increase in the use of credit?
JPMorgan Chase and U.S. Bancorp, the other big lenders, are also reporting very high levels of mortgage origination revenue.
"With housing markets still weak, high levels of mortgage distress may well persist for some time to come," Mr. Bernanke warned.
Signs that home prices are entering bubble territory in these economies include fast-rising home prices, high and rising price-to-income ratios, and high levels of mortgage debt as a share of household debt.
However, true to form, Weiss adds a cautionary note: He points to the high levels of mortgage debt relative to home values.
Such products accounted for 86 per cent of all mortgages, the highest level of fixed rate mortgage uptake at any point for at least 20 years.
He noted, however, that the bank was still seeing a high level of souring mortgage loans, and said he expects high default-related expenses "for a while longer".
While a handful of previous polls report consistently high levels of support for the mortgage interest deduction, this is the first poll I've come across asking respondents about their preference for the distribution of federal homeownership subsidies.
Brian Bethune, the chief U.S. economist for Global Insight, said sales of both new and existing homes continue to be hurt by high levels of unemployment, relatively high mortgage rates, and tight credit.
