A slight up tick in weekly mortgage applications was driven by increased refinance activity. Meanwhile, veterans’ share of applications was thinner than it’s been in four months.
On a seasonally adjusted basis, there was a less than 1 percent increase from one week earlier in the Market Composite Index for the seven days ended March 2.
But the index, which is a measure of retail residential loan applications, jumped 13 percent from the week ended Feb. 23 when seasonal factors are ignored.
The Mortgage Bankers Association reported the index based on its
Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey. The trade group says that the survey covers more than three-quarters of all applications.
Applications for refinances rose 2 percent as refinance share was unchanged at 41.8 percent.
In the same week a year ago refinance share was 45.4 percent.
The survey indicated that applications for loans to finance a home purchase were off a percent from the preceding week on a seasonally adjusted basis. Without considering seasonal factors, purchase-money activity leapt 13 percent from a week earlier and was up 1 percent from a year earlier.
At 10.1 percent, the share of applications for loans insured by the Federal Housing Administration was more narrow than 10.3 percent in last week’s report and 11.8 percent twelve months ago.
Applications for mortgages guaranteed by the Department of Veterans Affairs represented 9.9 percent of weekly volume — the thinnest VA share since the week ended Oct. 27, 2017. The share was 10.7 percent the prior week and 11.6 percent a year prior.
MBA reported that applications for adjustable-rate mortgages accounted for 7.3 percent of the weekly total. ARM share widened from 6.7 percent in the last report but was more thin than 7.7 percent in the same seven days last year.
MBA’s data indicate that interest rates on jumbo mortgages were 9 basis points lower than conforming rates. The spread widened from 7 BPS in last week’s report
but was the same as in the week ended March 3, 2017.
