Applications Decline

The Market Composite Index, an overall measure of mortgage applications, fell to 626.0 on a seasonally adjusted basis during the week ended Nov. 7 from 685.2 the week before, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association of America's Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey.On an unadjusted basis, applications were down 9.8% on the week and down 38.1% from a year earlier. The Purchase Index fell from 404.3 to 375.4 on a seasonally adjusted basis, while the Refinance Index declined from 2319.4 to 2084.2. Refinancings represented 50.9% of total applications, down from 51.1% the previous week, while adjustable-rate mortgages accounted for 26.6%. The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages rose from 5.85% to 5.94%, and points (including the origination fee) fell from 1.47 to 1.39 for loans with 80% loan-to-value ratios, the MBA reported. The MBA can be found online at http://www.mbaa.org.