Mortgage Applications Down 14.4% as Mortgage Rates Jump, Says MBA

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According to the Mortgage Bankers Association's (MBA) latest Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey  for the week ending November 12, the Market Composite Index decreased 14.4 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier. The results do not include an adjustment for Veterans Day. On an unadjusted basis, the Index decreased 15.0 percent compared with the previous week.

The Refinance Index decreased 16.5 percent from the previous week and is at the lowest level observed since July of this year.  The seasonally adjusted Purchase Index decreased 5.0 percent from one week earlier, the first decrease after three consecutive weekly increases. The unadjusted Purchase Index decreased 8.2 percent compared with the previous week and was 11.3 percent lower than the same week one year ago.

"Rates increased sharply last week due to stronger economic data and lingering uncertainty regarding the structure and impact of the Fed's QE2 program.  Mortgage applications, particularly for refinances, dropped in response," said Michael Fratantoni, MBA's Vice President of Research and Economics.

The four week moving average for the seasonally adjusted Market Index is down 2.8 percent.  The four week moving average is up 1.3 percent for the seasonally adjusted Purchase Index, while this average is down 3.7 percent for the Refinance Index.

The refinance share of mortgage activity decreased to 80.3 percent of total applications from 81.7 percent the previous week. The adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) share of activity remained constant at 5.3 percent of total applications.

The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages increased to 4.46 percent from 4.28 percent, with points increasing to 1.13 from 1.04 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent loan-to-value (LTV) ratio loans.  This is the highest 30-year fixed-rate observed in the survey since the week ending September 10, 2010. The effective rate also increased from last week.

The average contract interest rate for 15-year fixed-rate mortgages increased to 3.87 percent from 3.64 percent, with points decreasing to 0.91 from 1.08 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent LTV loans. This is the highest 15-year fixed-rate observed in the survey since the week ending September 17, 2010.The effective rate also increased from last week.

 

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