Mortgage application volume decreased 1.8% during the week ended July 21, as the average rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage remained unchanged at 6.87%, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Weekly Applications Survey.
Applications for refinances decreased 0.4% compared with the previous week and were down 30% compared with the same week one year earlier.
Applications for purchases decreased 3% compared with one week earlier and were down 23% compared with the same week one year ago.
“Mortgage rates were essentially flat last week but remained high, with the 30-year fixed rate staying at 6.87 percent and contributing to a pullback in mortgage applications,” says Joel Kan, vice president and deputy chief economist for the MBA, in a statement. “The 2.5 percent decline in purchase activity, partly driven by a 10 percent decrease in FHA applications, pushed the purchase index to its lowest level in over a month.
“The decrease in FHA purchase applications contributed to an increase in the overall average purchase loan size to $432,700, its highest level since the end of this May,” Kan adds. “Refinance applications remained lackluster, running 30 percent behind year-ago levels. Many borrowers remain on the sidelines given current rates and persistent affordability challenges.”
The refinance share of mortgage activity increased to 28.7% of total applications, up from 28.4% the previous week.
The adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) share of activity decreased to 5.9% of total applications.
Photo: Kaleb Tapp