Apps Inch Higher

The Market Composite Index, an overall measure of mortgage applications, inched up from 600.6 to 601.2 on a seasonally adjusted basis during the week ended June 18, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association's Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey.On an unadjusted basis, applications fell 0.4% on the week and were down 59.7% from the level of a year earlier. The Purchase Index rose from 449.5 to 454.5 on a seasonally adjusted basis, while the Refinance Index fell from 1479.4 to 1454.6. Refinancings represented 33.4% of total applications, down from 33.8% the previous week, while adjustable-rate mortgages accounted for 33.5%, the MBA said. The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages fell from 6.34% to 6.21%, and points (including the origination fee) fell from 1.29 to 1.26 for loans with 80% loan-to-value ratios, the MBA reported. The MBA can be found online at http://www.mortgagebankers.org.