Mortgage applications increased 5.3% during the week ended April 7, as the average rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage dropped to 6.30%, down from 6.40% the previous week, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Weekly Applications Survey.
Applications for refinances increased 0.1% compared with the previous week but were down 57% compared with the same week one year ago.
Applications for purchases increased 8% compared with the previous week but were down 31% compared with a year earlier.
“Incoming data last week showed that the job market is beginning to slow, which led to the 30-year fixed rate decreasing to 6.30 percent – the lowest level in two months,” says Mike Fratantoni, senior vice president and and chief economist for the MBA, in a statement. “Prospective homebuyers this year have been quite sensitive to any drop in mortgage rates, and that played out last week with purchase applications increasing by 8 percent. Refinance application volume was a mixed bag with total volume essentially flat, conventional volume down for the week, but VA refinance volume increasing. The level of refinance activity remains almost 60 percent below last year, as most homeowners are currently locked in at much lower rates.”
The refinance share of mortgage activity decreased to 27.0% of total applications, down from 28.6% the previous week.
The adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) share of activity fell to 6.0% of total applications.