Mortgage application volume decreased 3.3% on an adjusted basis during the week ended March 18, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey.
Applications for refinances decreased 5%, while applications for purchases decreased 1% relative to the previous week.
On an unadjusted basis, application volume decreased 3% compared with the previous week.
The refinance share of mortgage activity was 53.9% of total applications – a decrease from 55% the prior week.
The average rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) was 3.93%, a slight decrease from 3.94%.
The average rate for a jumbo, 30-year FRM was 3.85%, a slight decrease from 3.86%.
The average rate for a 30-year FRM backed by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) was 3.74%, a decrease from 3.77%
The average rate for a 15-year FRM was 3.18%, a decrease from 3.22%.
The average rate for a 5/1 adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) was 3.13%, a decrease from 3.23%.
The MBA says the ARM share of activity remained unchanged at 4.9% of total applications.
Looking at volume by loan type, applications for mortgages backed by the FHA accounted for 11.8% of all applications – a slight increase from 11.7% the week prior. The Veterans Affairs share of total applications was 12.6%, an increase from 12.3% the previous week. The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s share of total applications was 0.9%, a slight increase from 0.8% the week prior.