Falling Refis Lead to Drop in Mortgage Applications

Mortgage applications dipped 3.4% from a week earlier, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

The MBA's Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending April 29 found that the refinance index dropped 6% from the previous week. And the refinance share of all mortgage activity similarly declined to 52.9% from 54.4% a week ago.

The purchase index slipped 0.1% from one week earlier.

The adjustable-rate mortgage share of activity increased to 5.3%, while the FHA share of total applications rose to 13.5% from 12.3% the week prior.

But like refinances, the VA share of total applications decreased, falling 70 basis points to 11.5%. The USDA share of total applications also declined by 10 basis points to 0.7%.

The rates for most mortgage products increased during the week.

The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances ($417,000 or less) increased two basis points to 3.87%.

The average rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with jumbo loan balances (greater than $417,000) rose a single basis point to 3.79%.

The average rate for the 30-year backed by the FHA expanded three basis points to 3.69%, while for 15-year fixed-rate mortgages, the average rate rose four basis points to 3.13%.

The average rate for 5/1 ARMs was the only one to decrease, dropping 11 basis points to 2.91%.