Mortgage applications increased 3.2% on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week ago, according to Market Composite Index data from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending December 9.
On an unadjusted basis, the Index increased 0.4% compared with the previous week. The Refinance Index increased 3% from the previous week and was 85% lower than the same week one year ago. The seasonally adjusted Purchase Index increased 4 percent from one week earlier. The unadjusted Purchase Index decreased 1% compared with the previous week and was 38% lower than the same week one year ago.
“Mortgage rates increased slightly after a month of declines, as financial markets reacted to mixed signals regarding inflation and the Federal Reserve’s next policy moves. The 30-year fixed rate inched to 6.42 percent, which is still close to the lowest rate in a month,” says Joel Kan, MBA’s vice president and deputy chief economist. “Overall applications increased, driven by increases in purchase and refinance activity. However, with rates more than three percentage points higher than a year ago, both purchase and refinance applications are still well behind last year’s pace.”
“The ongoing moderation in home-price growth, along with further declines in mortgage rates, may encourage more buyers to return to the market in the coming months,” adds Kan.
The refinance share of mortgage activity increased to 29.4% of total applications from 28.7% the previous week. The adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) share of activity increased to 7.7% of total applications.
The FHA share of total applications decreased to 13.1% from 13.7% the week prior. The VA share of total applications increased to 11.5% from 11.4% the week prior. The USDA share of total applications remained unchanged at 0.6% from the week prior.