Applications Fall

Mortgage applications fell 4.2% on a seasonally adjusted basis during the week ended Oct. 6, according to the MortgageBankers Association of America's weekly Mortgage Application Survey. On an unadjustedbasis, applications were down 3.9% on the week and up 15.0% from the level recorded a year ago. On a seasonallyadjusted basis, the Purchase Index fell from 320.4 the previous week to 302.8; the Refinancing Index was up from470.6 to 475.0; the Conventional Index decreased from 417.6 to 408.4; and the Government Index declined from 217.1to 193.9. Refinancings represented 21.8% of total applications, up from 20.7% the previous week, while adjustable-ratemortgages accounted for 14.5%, up from 13.7%. The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgageswas 7.87%, up from 7.80% the previous week, while points (including the origination fee) fell from 1.18 to 1.15for loans with 80% loan-to-value ratios, the MBA reported. The MBA's website address is http://www.mbaa.org.