Mortgage Applications Up Slightly In MBA Weekly Survey

MBA (8/6/2008 ) Kemp, Carolyn
Mortgage applications ticked up last week as key interest rates fell for the second consecutive week, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending Aug. 1.
The seasonally adjusted Market Composite Index rose by 2.8 percent to 432.6 from 420.8 one week earlier. On an unadjusted basis, the Index increased by 2.4 percent compared with the previous week but was down by 33.7 percent compared with the same week one year earlier. The four-week moving average fell by 3.7 percent to 466.3 from 486.5.

The seasonally adjusted Refinance Index increased by 4.4 percent to 1121.8 from 1074.4 the previous week. The four-week moving average fell by 4.8 percent to 1266.0 from 1330.3. The refinance share of mortgage activity increased to 35.9 percent of total applications from 35.2 percent the previous week.

The seasonally adjusted Purchase Index increased by 1.8 percent to 315.2 from 309.5 one week earlier. The Conventional Purchase Index decreased by 0.3 percent while the Government Purchase Index (largely FHA) increased by 7.2 percent. The four-week moving average dropped by 4.8 percent to 330.0 from 342.6.

The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages decreased to 6.41 percent from 6.46 percent, with points decreasing to 1.13 from 1.16 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent loan-to-value (LTV) ratio loans.

The average contract interest rate for 15-year fixed-rate mortgages increased to 6.02 percent from 5.98 percent, with points decreasing to 1.02 from 1.18 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent LTV loans.

The average contract interest rate for one-year adjustable-rate mortgages decreased to 7.17 percent from 7.25 percent, with points decreasing to 0.36 from 0.39 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent LTV loans. The ARM share of activity decreased to 6.9 percent from 7.3 percent of total applications from the previous week.

The survey covers 50 percent of all U.S. retail residential mortgage originations and has been conducted weekly since 1990. Respondents include mortgage bankers, commercial banks and thrifts.