Mortgage applications during the week ending March 22 met expectations that they would reverse
“The rebound in mortgage applications is a small piece of a brighter housing outlook. Interest rates are still at record lows despite their upward trend, and consumers are taking advantage of record home affordability. Look for more buyers to enter the market this spring and a more robust housing recovery to occur,” said Quicken Loans chief economist Bob Walters in an emailed statement released Wednesday. Walters the previous week had predicted a reversal.
Meanwhile, the Refinance Index—mirroring the MBA’s broader composite application index—also was up 8% in the trade group’s most recent survey data. On both a seasonally adjusted and unadjusted basis the Purchase Index rose 7% week to week, and on an unadjusted basis it was up 10% from the same week a year ago, according to the MBA.
The refinance share of mortgage activity remained unchanged week-to-week at 75% of total applications, with the Home Affordable Refinance Program share of refi activity dropping a bit to 29% from 31% during the same period. The adjustable-rate mortgage share of activity was just 5% of total apps during the most recent survey week.
The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances of $417,500 or less dropped to 3.79% from 3.82%, with average points increasing to 0.44 of a point from 0.38 of a point. (The MBA includes the origination fee in points and averages in this category are for 80% loan-to-value ratio mortgages.)
The average contract interest rate for 30-year FRMs with jumbo loan balances of greater than $417,500 fell to 3.9% in the most recent survey week from 3.95% the previous week, with average points increasing to 0.42 of a point from 0.36 of a point.
The average contract interest rate for 30-year FRMs backed by the FHA declined to 3.51% over the course of the most recent survey week from 3.53% a week earlier, but with average points increasing to 0.43 of a point from 0.31 of a point the effective rate was higher.
The average contract interest rate for 15-year FRMs remained right where it had been the previous week at 3.02%. Average points in this category increased to 0.42 of a point from 0.36 of a point.
The average contract interest rate for 5/1 hybrid ARMs fell slightly to 2.58% from 2.59% week-to-week, with average points dropping to 0.32 of a point from 0.4 of a point.
