Mortgage Application Volumes Slightly Uptick This Week

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According to the Mortgage Bankers Association's Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending September 16, mortgage applications increased 0.6 percent from one week earlier.

The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, increased 0.6 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier. On an unadjusted basis, the Index increased 25.2 percent compared with the previous week, which included the Labor Day holiday. The Refinance Index increased 2.2 percent from the previous week. The seasonally adjusted Purchase Index decreased 4.7 percent from one week earlier. The unadjusted Purchase Index increased 17.1 percent compared with the previous week.

The four week moving average for the seasonally adjusted Market Index is down 3.15 percent. The four week moving average is down 0.54 percent for the seasonally adjusted Purchase Index, while this average is down 3.91 percent for the Refinance Index.

The refinance share of mortgage activity increased to 78.3 percent of total applications from 76.8 percent the previous week. The adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) share of activity decreased to 6.7 percent from 7.3 percent of total applications from the previous week.

During the month of August, the investor share of applications for home purchase was at 5.7 percent, a slight increase from 5.5 percent in July. This change was led by an increase in the Pacific region. In addition, the share of purchase mortgages for second homes increased to 6.0 percent in August from 5.9 percent in July.

The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances ($417,500 or less) remained unchanged at 4.29 percent, with points increasing to 0.41 from 0.38 (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 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with jumbo loan balances (> $417,500) decreased to 4.55 percent from 4.57 percent, with points increasing to 0.46 from 0.42 (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 30-year fixed-rate mortgages backed by the FHA  decreased to 4.07 percent from 4.08 percent, with points increasing to 0.51 from 0.48 (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 decreased to 3.46 percent from 3.52 percent, with points increasing to 0.45 from 0.38 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent LTV loans. The effective rate decreased from last week.

The average contract interest rate for 5/1 ARMs decreased to 2.96 percent from 2.99 percent, with points increasing to 0.49 from 0.46 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent loan-to-value (LTV) ratio loans. The effective rate increased from last week.

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