Although new refinance applications were little changed in the last week, an increase in purchase-money business pushed up overall activity.
On a seasonally adjusted basis, the Market Composite Index for the week ended Jan. 20 moved up 4 percent from one week previous.
The index, which is a measure of mortgage loan application volume, fell 5 percent from the last report when seasonal factors are excluded.
The Mortgage Bankers Association reported the index Wednesday as part of its Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey. The survey reportedly covers more than three-quarters of all retail residential loan applications.
The volume of refinance applications was virtually unchanged from the previous week. Meanwhile, refinance applications accounted for exactly half of the latest week’s activity — the lowest share since July 2015. Refinance share thinned from 53.0 percent in the week ended Jan. 13 and 59.1 percent in the same week in 2016.
Applications for purchase financing
strengthened by a seasonally adjusted 6 percent. Without seasonal adjustments, purchase activity moved up 2 percent on a week-over-week basis and was hardly changed on a year-over-year basis.
The share of applications that were for loans insured by the Federal Housing Administration widened to 13.6 percent from 13.1 percent but thinned slightly from 13.7 percent twelve months earlier.
Another 12.2 percent of the latest week’s applications was for loans
guaranteed by the Department of Veterans Affairs. VA share was thicker than 12.1 percent a week earlier and 10.8 percent a year earlier.
In the most-recent report, interest rates on jumbo mortgages were 7 basis points less than conforming rates. The jumbo-conforming spread was a negative 5 BPS the previous week
and a negative 13 BPS in the same week a year ago.
Adjustable-rate mortgage applications made up 5.7 percent of total activity, the same as in the last report. ARM share was 6.0 percent in the week ended Jan. 22, 2016.
