Mortgage application volume dipped 1.4% during the week ended June 2, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Weekly Applications Survey.
Applications for refinances dropped 1% compared with the previous week and were down 42% from a year ago.
Applications for purchases fell 2% compared with the previous week and were down 27% compared with a year ago.
This week’s results include an adjustment for the Memorial Day holiday.
“Mortgage rates declined last week from a recent high, but total application activity slipped for the fourth straight week,” says Joel Kan, vice president and deputy chief economist for the MBA, in a statement. “The 30-year fixed rate dipped to 6.81 percent, 10 basis points lower than last week but still the second highest rate of 2023.
“Overall applications were more than 30 percent lower than a year ago, as borrowers continue to grapple with the higher rate environment,” Kan says. “Purchase activity is constrained by reduced purchasing power from higher rates and the ongoing lack of for-sale inventory in the market, while there continues to be very little rate incentive for refinance borrowers. There was less of a decline in government purchase applications last week, which was consistent with a growing share of first-time home buyers in the market.”
The refinance share of mortgage activity increased to 27.3% of total applications, down from 26.7% the previous week.
The adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) share of activity remained unchanged at 6.8% of total applications.
Photo: Kaleb Tapp