Ellie Mae^® (NYSE:ELLI), a leading provider of innovative on-demand software solutions and services for the residential mortgage industry, today released its Origination Insight Report for May 2014. The report draws its data and insights from a robust sampling of the significant volume of loan applications that flow through Ellie Mae’s Encompass^® mortgage management software and the Ellie Mae Network™.

Beginning this month, the Origination Insight Report also includes analysis of VA loans, mortgages made by private lenders, which are backed by the Department of Veterans Affairs, and expanded FHA and conventional loan data. To get the full report, please visit http://www.elliemae.com/about-us/news-reports/ellie-mae-reports/.

*All references to months should be read as month ended.

More information and analysis of closed and denied loans by loan purpose and investor are available in the full report at http://www.elliemae.com/about-us/news-reports/ellie-mae-reports/.

To get a meaningful view of lender pull-through, Ellie Mae reviewed a sampling of loan applications initiated 90 days prior (i.e., the February 2014 applications) to calculate an overall closing rate of 57.8% in May 2014, up from 55% in April 2014 (see full report).

“Since January, purchase share has increased by at least three percentage points per month, and purchases now represent 66 percent of all closed loans,” said Jonathan Corr, president and chief operating officer of Ellie Mae. “Purchase share has grown nearly 25 percentage points since May 2013.

“Average days to close all loans moved back up to 40 in May, after falling below the 40-day mark last month for the first time since we began tracking data in August 2011,” added Corr.

“From an interest rate perspective, the average 30-year rate fell to 4.530 percent, its lowest percent since November 2013,” said Corr. “Our expanded coverage of the different loan categories also showed new 2014 lows for conventional (4.669 percent) and FHA (4.383 percent) 30-year interest rates.”

About the Ellie Mae Origination Insight Report

In 2013, approximately 3.5 million loan applications ran through Ellie Mae's Encompass mortgage management solution. The Origination Insight Report mines its application data from a robust sampling of approximately 57% of all mortgage applications that were initiated on the Encompass origination platform. Given the size of this sample and Ellie Mae’s market share, the Company believes the Origination Insight Report is a strong proxy of the underwriting standards that are being employed by lenders across the country.

The Origination Insight Report focuses on loans that closed or were denied in a specific month and compares their characteristics to similar loans that closed or were denied three and six months earlier. The closing rate is calculated on a 90-day cycle rather than on a monthly basis because most loan applications typically take one and a half to two months from application to closing. Loans that do not close could still be active applications or applications withdrawn by consumers or denied for incompleteness or nonqualification.

The Origination Insight Report details aggregated, anonymized data and does not disclose client-specific or proprietary information.

News organizations have the right to reuse this data, provided that Ellie Mae, Inc. is credited as the source.

About Ellie Mae

Ellie Mae (NYSE:ELLI) is a leading provider of innovative on-demand software solutions and services for the residential mortgage industry. Ellie Mae’s all-in-one Encompass® mortgage management solution provides one system of record that allows banks, credit unions and mortgage lenders to originate and fund mortgages and improve compliance, loan quality and efficiency. Visit EllieMae.com or call 877.355.4362 to learn more.

© 2014 Ellie Mae, Inc. Ellie Mae^®, Encompass^®, DataTrac^®, Ellie Mae Network™, Total Quality Loan™, TQL™ and the Ellie Mae logo are registered trademarks or trademarks of Ellie Mae, Inc. or its subsidiaries. All rights reserved. Other company and product names may be trademarks or copyrights of their respective owners.