Total mortgage application volume fell 3.0% on an adjusted basis during the week ended Aug. 3, with most of the decrease resulting from falling refinance volume, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey.
Total volume fell to its lowest level since January 2016, as applications for refinances fell 5% and applications for purchases fell 2%, compared with the previous week.
Applications for refinances fell to the lowest level since December 2000 as mortgage rates remained more or less flat.
The average rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage based on closings was 4.84%, unchanged compared with the previous week.
The refinance share of mortgage activity decreased to 36.6% of total applications, down from 37.1% the previous week.
After rising for the previous three weeks, the average rate for a 5/1 adjustable-rate mortgage fell to 4.07% from 4.17%.
Still, the recent rise in ARM rates pushed the ARM share of mortgage activity back down to 6.3% of total applications.
