US mortgage lenders face financial losses due to unaffordable housing and excess workforce costs.

US mortgage lenders lost an average of $301 on each home loan they originated last year, marking the first time on record that they have taken losses, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. The loss was due to a surge in loan rates that caused demand for purchase and refinance applications to plummet to their lowest level in decades. The cost of mortgage lending ballooned to $10,624 per loan last year, outpacing gains in loan servicing. Just 32% of firms active in the mortgage lending sector were profitable last year, down from 98% two years earlier.