Countrywide Financial Corp. said Wednesday that its mortgage volume rose 27 percent last month to $44 billion from a year earlier despite a feared downturn in the housing market.

Average daily mortgage applications rose 24 percent to $2.5 billion, and Countrywide’s loan pipeline or loans in process increased 25 percent to $60 billion as of Dec. 31. Both numbers were down slightly from November’s $2.7 billion and $69 billion, respectively.

Mortgages that Countrywide purchased from others increased 28 percent last month to $21 billion, bringing purchase activity for the fourth quarter and year to $61 billion and $232 billion, respectively.

Stanford L. Kurland, the Calabasas-based company’s president and chief operating officer, said in a statement that the continuation of relatively low interest rates throughout the year contributed last year to record mortgage loan production volume of $491 billion, likely an industry record.

Countrywide Bank’s total assets also rose 78 percent from a year ago to $73 billion, a new company record and $1 billion more than November’s reported assets.

Shares of Countrywide rose 4.3 percent to settle at $37.04 on Wednesday.