After decreasing 4.0% the previous week, mortgage application volume fell again, decreasing 2.1% during the week ended Aug. 19, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey.
Applications for refinances decreased 3% – which is surprising, considering that mortgage rates continued to hover near historic lows – while applications for purchases decreased 0.3%.
On an unadjusted basis, total volume decreased 3% compared with the previous week. Applications for purchases decreased 2%, on an unadjusted basis, and increased 8% compared with the same week one year earlier.
The refinance share of mortgage activity decreased to 62.4% of total applications from 62.6% the previous week.
The average rate for a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) was about 3.67%, up from 3.64% the previous week.
The average rate for a 30-year jumbo FRM was about 3.62%, up from 3.60%.
The average rate for a 30-year FRM backed by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) was 3.53%, up from 3.49%.
The average rate for a 15-year FRM was 2.95%, up from 2.90%.
The average rate for a 5/1 adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) was 2.84%, down from 2.85%.
The ARM share of activity remained unchanged at 4.6% of total applications.
Looking at the government loans, applications for mortgages backed by the FHA represented about 8.9% of all applications – down from 9.6% the week prior. The Veterans Affairs share of total applications was about 12.4%, down from 13.2%. The U.S. Department of Agriculture share of total applications remained unchanged at 0.6%.