Applications Plunge

The Market Composite Index, an overall measure of mortgage applications, plummeted from 1012.9 to 788.6 on a seasonally adjusted basis during the week ended April 9, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association's Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey.On an unadjusted basis, applications fell 21.5% on the week and were down 29.1% from the level of a year earlier. The Purchase Index declined from 477.5 to 432.2 on a seasonally adjusted basis, while the Refinance Index plunged from 4126.7 to 2861.6. Refinancings represented 50.4% of total applications, down from 57.1% the previous week, while adjustable-rate mortgages accounted for 29.4%. The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages rose from 5.75% to 5.77%, and points (including the origination fee) rose from 1.27 to 1.33 for loans with 80% loan-to-value ratios, the MBA reported. The MBA can be found online at http://www.mortgagebankers.org.