In what has been an otherwise quiet week, new purchase financing business jumped, though a more spectacular week-over-week improvement was noted in adjustable-rate and government-insured business.
A measure of upcoming originations, the U.S. Mortgage Market Index from Mortgage Daily, was 163 in the week ended March 25.
The index reflects average per-user rate locks by OpenClose clients.
The index, which is not adjusted for seasonal factors, increased 8 percent from the previous week’s report. But compared to the same week in 2015, the volume of rate locks has tumbled by nearly a fifth.
Figures from a year earlier were revised to reflect numbers from the same provider of data.
Rate locks for adjustable-rate mortgages were up more than a third from the report for the week ended March 18, the strongest week-over-week showing. Still, ARM activity has weakened by a quarter versus the same week last year. ARM share widened to 8.6 percent from 6.9 percent but was thinner than 9.2 percent this week in 2015.
The Federal Housing Administration MMI was 43, rising 15 percent from a week earlier and 12 percent better than a year earlier — the only category with a year-over-year gain. FHA share widened to 26.4 percent from 24.8 percent seven days prior and 18.9 percent as of the week ended March 27, 2015.
A 12 percent week-over-week
improvement was reported for purchase financing, though the category slipped 3 percent from this week last year.
Conventional rate locks rose 6 percent for the week and fell more than a quarter for the year.
Rate locks for refinances inched up 3 percent but were off a tenth from volume as of a year earlier. Refinance share was 68.9 percent, skinnier than 72.2 percent the prior week but fatter than 61.2 percent a year prior. The March 25, 2016, share consisted of a 42.5 percent rate-term share and a 26.4 percent cashout share.
The only category to experience a decline from the previous report was jumbo: 5 percent. Jumbo rate locks have plummeted 62 percent versus a year previous — the worst year-over-year performance. Jumbo share fell to 5.0 percent from 5.7 percent and was much more narrow than 10.6 percent a year ago.
Jumbo interest rates were less than a basis point lower than conforming rates. The spread swung from a positive 2 BPS the prior week and a positive 5 BPS a year prior.
Fixed rates on conforming 30-year loans averaged 3.71 percent, retreating 2 BPS from the last report and 37 BPS better than in the year-earlier report.
Rates on 15-year loans were 75 BPS lower than 30-year rates. The spread was up from 74 BPS last week and down from 84 BPS this week last year.
A Mortgage Daily analysis of Treasury market activity during this quiet week
suggests that fixed mortgage rates might be little changed in next week’s report.
