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By Bloomberg

Investors in BlackRock’s total return fund and Americans who refinanced their home loans have something to applaud about this year. Bank of America Corp. and the industry’s loan officers had setbacks. Here’s our list of who’s up and who’s down in a volatile year in the mortgage market.

Who’s Up

Jumbo Borrowers

Lenders amped up efforts in 2014 to win their business, allowing assets in their accounts to serve as collateral in lieu of down payments and rolling out adjustable-rate jumbo mortgages with low rates. In February, rates for a 30-year jumbo -- a loan of at least $417,000 in most areas -- dropped below those for a conventional mortgage.

Blackstone Group LP

The biggest private equity real estate firm started buying mostly foreclosed properties to rent in 2012 and has since become the largest U.S. landlord of single-family homes through its Invitation Homes unit, owning more than 46,000 houses in 14 markets. Values of the properties have continued to rise this year, with cities like Atlanta and Tampa posting increases of more than 30 percent since 2012.

Refinancers

Americans who waited until the last month of 2014 to refinance were rewarded. Conventional thinking early in the year that the costs of borrowing would rise was dispelled with the 30-year mortgage rate falling to 3.8 percent in December, the lowest since May 2013.

BlackRock Total Return Fund

Investors who put money in this $4.7 billion fund triumphed. The fund, managed by Rick Rieder and Bob Miller, delivered returns of 7.8 percent in 2014. That makes it the top performer out of 43 bond funds that invest about half of their $500 million or more of assets in mortgages.

Freedom Mortgage Corp.

Stan Middleman expanded his company serving as a mortgage middleman. The chief executive officer of the Mount Laurel, New Jersey-based lender buys mortgages from other banks and services them. Freedom has more than tripled its purchase loan volume for the first nine months of this year to $8.5 billion, achieving the biggest percentage increase among the 25 largest U.S. lenders, according to Inside Mortgage Finance. Middleman also plans to add retail branches through acquisitions after buying BluFi Lending to gain offices in California and Nevada.

Older Homeowners

Americans aged 65 and over were the only group to maintain their homeownership rate this year compared to 2008. Thanks to less mortgage debt and more wealth, they’ve kept their rate at 80 percent, becoming an anchor in the housing market. Every other age group’s homeownership rate has dropped since the financial crisis.

Ellie Mae Inc.

This mortgage technology firm soared in a year that saw most lenders grapple with new regulations. To help with compliance, lenders are buying software and services from Ellie Mae, which processes almost a quarter of U.S. mortgage applications. The company’s stock hit a record high in November and has gained 51 percent for the year.

Benjamin Lawsky

Three years after New York Governor Andrew Cuomo put him in charge of the Department of Financial Services, Lawsky has established himself as one of the nation’s most influential business regulators. In addition to extracting more than $3 billion in fines from global banks this year, he’s probed the foreclosure and loan modification practices of nonbank mortgage servicers and this week won a settlement with Ocwen Financial Corp. If Lawsky leaves his post in coming months for the private sector, he will take with him a reputation for getting results.

Who’s Down

First-Time Buyers

Tight credit, student debt and sluggish wage growth have kept them locked out of homeownership. First-time buyers accounted for 33 percent of home purchases this year, the lowest since 1987, according to the National Association of Realtors.

Fannie-Freddie Reform

The congressional attempt to replace government-controlled Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac suffered a blow this year when some Democrats objected to the bill, saying it didn’t ensure that disadvantaged borrowers could get loans. With Republicans in charge of both houses of Congress next year, they will have to find common ground with President Barack Obama on any legislation that would wind down the mortgage giants.

Ocwen Financial Corp.

Executive Chairman William Erbey will resign next month as part of a settlement with the New York Department of Financial Services that includes Ocwen paying $150 million in penalties and restitution. Lawsky, who heads the department, had raised concerns about the nonbank servicer’s loan modification practices, possible conflicts of interests and backdating of notices to borrowers. Shares of Ocwen have plunged more than 70 percent this year. “We are pleased to have reached a comprehensive settlement with the DFS and will act promptly to comply with the terms,” Ocwen CEO Ronald Faris said in a statement.

Bank of America Corp.

In August, the bank reached a record deal for almost $16.7 billion to end U.S. probes of mortgage-bond sales, bringing its total to more than $70 billion in settlements to resolve claims from the housing bust. The lender has paid more in such legal settlements than any other company. Bank of America spokesman Terry Francisco declined to comment.

Fannie-Freddie Investors

Investors in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac lost a legal bid in September to force the bailed-out mortgage companies to share profits with private holders. Bruce Berkowitz’s Fairholme Fund is down 3.3 percent for the year, partly because of investments in the preferred shares of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Berkowitz said in a note to shareholders that he strongly disagreed with the federal judge’s ruling. Fairholme is appealing.

Atlantic City

The East Coast’s onetime gambling capital had the highest foreclosure rate among metropolitan areas in November after four of its 12 casinos closed this year. The Atlantic City rate of 0.35 percent means one out of every 289 houses is facing a foreclosure, according to RealtyTrac Inc. That’s helped give New Jersey the second highest rate nationwide. A year ago the Garden State wasn’t even in the top 20.

Loan Officers

The contraction of the mortgage industry in 2014 amid lackluster demand for home loans has pushed thousands of workers out the door. JPMorgan Chase & Co. said in November it plans to eliminate about 7,000 mortgage-banking jobs. Wells Fargo & Co. said in the first quarter that it was getting rid of 1,100 jobs in its residential mortgage business.