Applications Decline

The Market Composite Index, an overall measure of mortgage applications, fell from 687.0 to 643.9 on a seasonally adjusted basis during the holiday-shortened week ended July 9, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association's Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey.On an unadjusted basis, applications fell 25.0% on the week and were down 60.9% from the level of a year earlier. The Purchase Index fell from 500.9 to 468.8 on a seasonally adjusted basis, while the Refinance Index declined from 1769.7 to 1662.4. Refinancings represented 35.8% of total applications, unchanged from the previous week, while adjustable-rate mortgages accounted for 31.5%, the MBA said. The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages drifted down from 5.96% to 5.95%, and points (including the origination fee) fell from 1.37 to 1.35 for loans with 80% loan-to-value ratios, the MBA reported. The MBA can be found online at http://www.mortgagebankers.org.