Mortgage applications

Purchases inched upward, but refinance volumes retreated, with interest rates now well above levels from a year ago.

An upturn in government-backed applications also led average loan sizes to decrease for the first time in over a month.

Purchase applications increased for the fourth consecutive week, with the average loan amount at its highest since February.

Purchase and refinance numbers both came in higher, while average loan sizes also recorded an uptick.

Refinance numbers declined for the seventh time in eight weeks, leading to an overall weekly decrease.

Despite elevated prices and supply-chain bottlenecks, October application activity was up for the second time in three months and pushed the average loan size to a record high.

The weekly gain was the largest since July, but overall activity still remains close to early 2020 lows.

Purchases also dropped on a weekly basis, but still show signs of strong demand.

Purchases picked up, but refinances slowed for a fifth straight week, as rising interest rates took steam out of the market.

The heightened level of refinancing seen earlier this year cooled further, with applications declining for the fourth straight week.