Mortgage Applications Decline as Interest Rates Increase

June 22, 2011(Chris Moore)

The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) today released its Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending June 17, 2011. The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, decreased 5.9 percent from the previous week as a rise in interest rates causes mortgage applications to lose steam.

On an unadjusted basis, the Index decreased 6.2 percent compared with the previous week. The four week moving average for the seasonally adjusted Market Index is up 0.4 percent.

The seasonally adjusted Purchase Index decreased 2.8 percent from one week earlier. The four week moving average is down 0.7 percent for the seasonally adjusted Purchase Index. The unadjusted Purchase Index decreased 3.9 percent compared with the previous week and was 4.4 percent higher than the same week one year ago.

The Refinance Index decreased 7.2 percent from the previous week. The four week moving average is up 0.8 percent.

The refinance share of mortgage activity increased to 69.2 percent of total applications from 70.0 percent last week.

The adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) share of activity decreased to 5.9 percent from 6.1 percent the previous week.

The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages increased to 4.57 percent from 4.51 percent last week, with points decreasing to 0.91 from 1.05 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent loan-to-value (LTV) ratio loans. The effective rate increased from last week.

The average contract interest rate for 15-year fixed-rate mortgages increased to 3.70 percent from 3.67 percent last week, with points decreasing to 1.05 from 1.06 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent LTV loans. The effective rate increased from last week.

Tags: MBA, home purchase applications, mortgage rates, fixed rate mortgage, adjustable rate mortgage, refinance, interest rate

Sources:
MBA