New applications for residential loans dipped lower this past week as government-insured and government-guaranteed share thinned.
As of the week that ended on Oct. 30, the seasonally adjusted
Market Composite Index declined by less than a percent from a week earlier.
Without any adjustment for seasonal variations, the composite index was down one percent compared to its level as of seven days previous.
The Mortgage Bankers Association reported the
measure of mortgage loan application volume in its Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey.
“The survey covers over 75 percent of all U.S. retail residential mortgage applications, and has been conducted weekly since 1990,” the trade group says. “Respondents include mortgage bankers, commercial banks and thrifts.”
Refinance activity slowed by one percent compared to the previous survey.
Refinance applications accounted for 59.7 percent of overall activity, widening from the 59.5 percent share in the prior report.
Applications for purchases slipped one percent. Without seasonal adjustments, purchase business was two percent lower than the previous week and 20 percent higher than the year-earlier week.
Mortgages insured by the Federal Housing Administration represented 13.2 percent of total weekly activity. FHA share was down from 13.7 percent a week earlier.
Loans guaranteed by the Department of Veterans Affairs garnered 11.9 percent of applications. VA share was cut from 12.3 percent.
Applications for adjustable-rate mortgages made up 6.7 percent of the latest week’s applications. ARM share
widened from 6.6 percent in the prior report.
Interest rates on jumbo mortgages were 11 basis points less than rates on conforming loans. The jumbo-conforming spread widened from a negative 10 BPS in the last survey.
