Applications Fall

The Market Composite Index, an overall measure of mortgage applications, fell from 620.4 to 616.1 on a seasonally adjusted basis during the week ended Aug. 6, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association's Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey.On an unadjusted basis, applications declined 1.4% on the week and were down 24.2% from the level of a year earlier. The Purchase Index fell from 452.0 to 440.0 on a seasonally adjusted basis, while the Refinance Index climbed from 1600.3 to 1640.5. Refinancings represented 37.2% of total applications, up from 35.8% the previous week, while adjustable-rate mortgages accounted for 34.2%, the MBA said. The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages fell from 5.97% to 5.80%, and points (including the origination fee) decreased from 1.48 to 1.24, for loans with 80% loan-to-value ratios, the MBA reported. The MBA can be found online at http://www.mortgagebankers.org.