Applications Rise

The Market Composite Index, an overall measure of mortgage applications, rose from 709.1 to 755.5 on a seasonally adjusted basis during the holiday-shortened week ended June 3, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association's Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey.On an unadjusted basis, applications fell 4.9% on the week and were up 31.5% from their level of a year earlier. The Purchase Index rose from 462.7 to 479.3 on a seasonally adjusted basis, while the Refinance Index climbed from 2142.1 to 2362.1. Refinancings represented 42.9% of total applications, up from 41.2% the previous week, while adjustable-rate mortgages accounted for 31.7%, the MBA said. The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages fell from 5.61% to 5.55%, and points (including the origination fee) increased from 1.07 to 1.12 for loans with 80% loan-to-value ratios, the MBA reported. The MBA can be found online at http://www.mortgagebankers.org.