Mortgage Applications in U.S. Dip in Mid-April

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According to the Mortgage Bankers Association's latest Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending April 17, 2020, U.S. mortgage applications decreased 0.3 percent from one week earlier.

The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, decreased 0.3 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier. On an unadjusted basis, the Index increased 0.1 percent compared with the previous week.

The Refinance Index decreased 1 percent from the previous week and was 225 percent higher than the same week one year ago. The seasonally adjusted Purchase Index increased 2 percent from one week earlier. The unadjusted Purchase Index increased 3 percent compared with the previous week and was 31 percent lower than the same week one year ago.

"Mortgage applications were essentially unchanged last week, as a slight drop in refinance activity was offset by a 2 percent increase in purchase applications. California and Washington, two states hit hard by COVID-19, saw another week of rising activity - partly driving the overall increase. Despite the weekly gain, the purchase index remained close to its lowest level since 2015, and was over 30 percent lower than a year ago," said Joel Kan, MBA's Associate Vice President of Economic and Industry Forecasting. "The pandemic-related economic stoppage has caused some buyers and sellers to delay their decisions until there are signs of a turnaround. This has resulted in reduced buyer traffic, less inventory, and March existing-homes sales falling to their slowest annual pace in nearly a year."

Added Kan, "Despite the 30-year fixed rate remaining at a record low in MBA's survey, the refinance index dropped slightly last week but remained close to its 2013 highs. Borrowers continue to take advantage of low rates to gain some monthly savings, which is a welcome reprieve during these tough economic times."

The refinance share of mortgage activity decreased to 75.4 percent of total applications from 76.2 percent the previous week. The adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) share of activity increased to 2.8 percent of total applications.

The FHA share of total applications increased to 10.3 percent from 9.5 percent the week prior. The VA share of total applications decreased to 13.8 percent from 14.3 percent the week prior. The USDA share of total applications remained unchanged from 0.4 percent the week prior.

The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances ($510,400 or less) remained unchanged at 3.45 percent, with points remaining unchanged at 0.29 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent loan-to-value ratio (LTV) loans. The effective rate increased from last week.

The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with jumbo loan balances (greater than $510,400) increased to 3.81 percent from 3.80 percent, with points increasing to 0.34 from 0.23 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent LTV loans. The effective rate increased from last week.

The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages backed by the FHA decreased to 3.33 percent from 3.45 percent, with points remaining unchanged at 0.19 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent LTV loans. The effective rate decreased from last week.

The average contract interest rate for 15-year fixed-rate mortgages decreased to 3.03 percent from 3.04 percent, with points increasing to 0.33 from 0.27 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent LTV loans.

The effective rate increased from last week. The average contract interest rate for 5/1 ARMs decreased to 3.29 percent from 3.34 percent, with points decreasing to -0.15 from 0.35 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent LTV loans. The effective rate decreased from last week.