Women are less likely than men to miss a mortgage payment, according to a new study from the Urban Institute. Yet, they tend to pay higher interest rates.

A single male borrower had a 6 percent probability of default while a comparable female-only borrower had an expected default rate of 5.8 percent, the study showed.

"This is the first step in saying the barometer is consistently not accurately predicting whether women are able to pay their mortgages," says Sheryl Pardo, a spokesperson for the Housing Finance Policy Center at the Urban Institute.

This revelation was the focus of a report by the National Association of Realtors:

"Even though women show a higher tendency to pay their mortgages on time, they tend to pay higher interest rates. Why? The study posits that women tend to get higher interest rates because they comprise a higher percentage of subprime loan borrowers and their credit profiles don't tend to be as good as men's.

"But the study's authors argue that lenders need to reassess predictors in determining how likely a person is to default on the loan.

"Women's predictors are lower, which suggests she's not going to do as well, but lenders aren't predicting accurately," Pardo told Credit.com. "Women do better than their characteristics say they should do. And, in fact, they perform better than men."

"Women tend to pay higher interest rates than men — 5.48 percent versus 5.41 percent, the study found. Women borrowers tend to have more debt to income, which lowers credit scores, and they tend to have less income than men ($68,000 versus $95,000 for men)."

Q: Are home prices lower in fall and winter months?

A: Yes, home prices tend to be lower in the fall and winter, according to a recent study

"Home sales prices in the nation's largest metros typically peak during the summer but drop in the fall and are lowest in the winter, according to a new study from NerdWallet, in which researchers analyzed sales and listings over the past two years in the 50 largest metros using realtor.com data," it was reported by the National Association of Realtors.

Q: Is it becoming easier to obtain a mortgage loan?

A: At this point the availability of mortgage loans is becoming a bit more difficult. Here's a portion of the most recent report on the subject:

"Mortgage credit availability decreased in August according to the Mortgage Credit Availability Index, a report from the Mortgage Bankers Association which analyzes data from Ellie Mae's AllRegs Market Clarity business information tool.

"The MCAI decreased 0.4 percent to 164.7 in August. A decline in the MCAI indicates that lending standards are tightening, while increases in the index are indicative of loosening credit.

"The index was benchmarked to 100 in March 2012. Of the four component indices, the Conforming MCAI saw the greatest decrease in availability over the month (down 0.9 percent), followed by the Government MCAI (down 0.5 percent), and the Conventional MCAI (down 0.2 percent). The Jumbo MCAI increased 0.5 percent from last month."

Q: Are mortgage applications rising?

A: Not at this point. The latest report shows a drop in applications.

Mortgage applications decreased 7.3 percent from one week earlier, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association's Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the previous week.

"The Refinance Index decreased 8 percent from the previous week to the lowest level since June 2016. The seasonally adjusted Purchase Index decreased 7 percent from one week earlier. The unadjusted Purchase Index increased 15 percent compared with the previous week and was 3 percent higher than the same week one year ago," it was reported.

Q: Are commercial mortgages increasing?

A: Yes. Commercial and multifamily mortgages are rising, according to the latest report.

"The level of commercial/multifamily mortgage debt outstanding increased by $39.9 billion in the second quarter of 2016, as three of the four major investor groups increased their holdings, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association commercial/Multifamily Mortgage Debt Outstanding Report.

"Total commercial/multifamily debt outstanding rose 1.4 percent over the first quarter of 2016 to $2.90 trillion at the end of the second quarter. Multifamily mortgage debt outstanding rose to $1.09 trillion, an increase of $27.6 billion, or 2.6 percent, from the first quarter of 2016."

To find out more about Jim Woodard and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com. Jim Woodard's email: [email protected]. COPYRIGHT 2016 CREATORS.COM.