Mortgage Applications Up Again In MBA Weekly Survey

MBA (5/14/2008 ) Kemp, Carolyn
Mortgage applications rose for the second consecutive week as key interest rates dropped again, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending May 9.
The Market Composite Index rose to 674.4, an increase of 2.9 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from 655.4 one week earlier. On an unadjusted basis, the Index increased by 2.9 percent compared with the previous week but was down by 1.1 percent compared with the same week one year earlier. The four-week moving average fell by 2.7 percent to 633.6 from 650.8.

The seasonally adjusted Refinance Index increased by 6.5 percent to 2422.1 from 2273.8 the previous week. The four-week moving average fell by 4.8 percent to 2221.8 from 2332.0. The refinance share of mortgage activity increased to 48.7 percent of total applications from 47.1 percent the previous week.

The seasonally adjusted Purchase Index decreased by 0.7 percent to 378.5 from 381.3 one week earlier. The Conventional Purchase Index decreased by 0.8 percent while the Government Purchase Index (largely FHA) decreased by 0.7 percent. The four-week moving average fell by 0.2 percent to 364.3 from 365.1.

The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages decreased to 5.82 percent from 5.91 percent, with points increasing to 1.23 from 1.12 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent loan-to-value (LTV) ratio loans.

The average contract interest rate for 15-year fixed-rate mortgages decreased to 5.38 percent from 5.49 percent, with points increasing to 1.09 from 1.07 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent LTV loans.

The average contract interest rate for one-year adjustable-rate mortgages decreased to 6.60 percent from 6.77 percent, with points decreasing to 1.31 from 1.35 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent LTV loans. The ARM share of activity increased to 8.3 percent from 6.8 percent of total applications from the previous week.

The survey covers 50 percent of all U.S. retail residential mortgage originations and has been conducted weekly since 1990. Respondents include mortgage bankers, commercial banks and thrifts.