Mortgage Application Volume Down for Sixth Week

Oncernagain a decline in refinancing wiped out modest gains in purchase mortgagernactivity during the week ended March 23. rnAs a result the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Weekly MortgagernApplications Survey decreased 2.7 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis fromrnthe previous week.   On an unadjusted basis the index was down 2.6rnpercent.</p

ThernRefinance Index decreased by 4.6 percent, the sixth consecutive week it has lostrnground.  It is now at its lowest levelrnsince December.  The decline was duernprimarily to a 12.0 percent drop in applications for government-backedrnrefinancing sector.  The conventional refinancingrnsector by comparison fell only 3.4 percent. rnThe refinancing share of all mortgage applications activity dropped torn71.9 percent from 73.4 percent.  This wasrnthe lowest share of activity for refinancing since last July.   </p

Thernseasonally adjusted Purchase Index increased 3.3 percent from the week endedrnMarch 16 and the unadjusted Purchase Index was 1.0 percent higher than duringrnthe same week in 2011.</p

Thernfour week moving average for the Market Index fell 3.40 percent and thisrnaverage for the Refinance Index was down 4.94 percent.  The moving average for the seasonallyrnadjusted Purchase Index rose 2.14 percent.</p

Interestrnrates increased across the board as did the effective rate of all productsrnputting most rates at their highest level since late 2011.   Thern30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) with a conforming balance of $417,500 or lessrnincreased to 4.23 percent from 4.19 percent. rnPoints decreased to 0.45 percent from 0.47 percent.  The average rate for a 30-year jumbo FRM,rnthose with balances over $417,500, increased to 4.54 percent with 0.46 pointrnfrom 4.49 percent with 0.38 point.  </p

FHA-backedrn30-year FRM rates were up 3 basis points to 3.96 percent and points increasedrnto 0.52 from 0.48.   Fifteen-year FRMrnrates averaged 3.50 percent with 0.42 point compared to 3.47 percent with 0.40 pointrnthe previous week.</p

Interestrnrates for 5/1 adjustable rate mortgages (ARMs) jumped to 3.0 percent with 0.42rnpercent from 2.90 percent with 0.44 point. rnARM applications represented 5.4 percent of all mortgage applicationsrnduring the week, down from 5.6 percent a week earlier.</p

Interestrnrate quotes are for a loan with an 80 percent loan-to-value ratio.  Points include the origination fee.</p

 Duringrnthe month of February, the investor share of applications for home purchase wasrnat 6.1 percent, a decrease from 6.4rnpercent in January.  This change was led by a decrease in the New Englandrnregion.  In addition, the share of purchase mortgages for second homesrndecreased to 5.8 percent in February from 5.9 percent in January.</p

MBA’s weekly surveyrncovers over 75 percent of all U.S. retail residential mortgage applications,rnand has been conducted weekly since 1990.  Respondents include mortgagernbankers, commercial banks and thrifts.  Base period and value for allrnindexes is March 16, 1990=100.</p

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