Applications Fall

The Market Composite Index, an overall measure of mortgage applications, fell from 603.8 to 533.9 on a seasonally adjusted basis during the holiday-shortened week ended Dec. 28, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association's Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey.On an unadjusted basis, applications decreased 47.2% on the week and were down 20.0% from the level recorded a year earlier. The Purchase Index fell from 394.5 to 360.8 on a seasonally adjusted basis, while the Refinance Index declined from 1915.3 to 1620.9. Refinancings represented 50.9% of total applications, down from 53.0% the previous week, while adjustable-rate mortgages accounted for 9.8%, the MBA said. The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages fell from 6.10% to 6.05%, and points (including the origination fee) were unchanged, at 1.05, for loans with 80% loan-to-value ratios, the association reported. The MBA can be found online at http://www.mortgagebankers.org.