After increasing 1.3% the previous week and 10% the week before that, mortgage application volume decreased 4.1% on an adjusted basis during the week ended April 22, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey.
Applications for refinances decreased 5%, while applications for purchases decreased 2%.
On an unadjusted basis, total volume decreased 3% compared with the previous week. Applications for purchases decreased 1%, on an unadjusted basis, but were 14% higher compared with the same week one year earlier.
The refinance share of mortgage activity was about 54.4% of total applications – down from 55.4%.
The decrease in applications for refinances was partly attributable to the fact that mortgage interest rates crept back up slightly. The average rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) was 3.85%, up from 3.83% the previous week.
The average rate for a 30-year FRM was 3.78%, up slightly from 3.77%.
The average rate for a 30-year FRM backed by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) was 3.66%, up from 3.64%.
The average rate for a 15-year FRM was 3.09%, up from 3.06%.
The average rate for a 5/1 adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) was 3.02%, up from 2.91%.
The ARM share of activity increased to 5.2% of total applications.
Looking at volume by loan type, about 12.3% of applications were for laons backed by the FHA, up from 10.6% the week prior. The Veterans Affairs share of total applications was 12.2%, down from 12.6% the week prior. The U.S. Department of Agriculture share of total applications remained unchanged from 0.8%.