Mortgage credit availability decreased in August, according to the Mortgage Credit Availability Index (MCAI), a report from the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) that analyzes data from the AllRegs Market Clarity product. The drop comes after four consecutive months of increases.

The MCAI decreased 0.7 percent to 111.5 in August. A decline in the MCAI indicates that lending standards are tightening, while increases in the index are indicative of a loosening of credit.

“The slight decline in the MCAI in August reflected a reduction in the availability of certain loan features, particularly interest-only and terms exceeding 30 years. As these loan features are outside of the qualified mortgage (QM) definition, these changes may reflect the beginning of QM implementation, and the fact that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are limited to acquiring loans that meet the QM definition,” Mike Fratantoni, MBA’s vice president of research and economics, said in a statement.