The weekly volume of new applications for home loans waned. Refinances continued to account for a shrinking share of mortgage applications as rates ascended to a more than four-year high.
A seasonally adjusted 3 percent decline from one week earlier was recorded for the Market Composite Index for the seven-day period that concluded on April 27.
However, when seasonal factors are ignored, the index —
a measure of retail residential loan application volume — retreated just 2 percent from the week ended April 20.
Behind the index is the Mortgage Bankers Association, which derived the details from its
Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey. MBA says the survey covers more than three-quarters of all applications.
Applications for refinances fell 4 percent from the last report. Meanwhile, refinances accounted for 36.5 percent of all activity — the most narrow share
since it was 36.3 percent in the week ended Sept. 5, 2008. Last week’s report had the share at 37.2 percent, while it was 41.6 percent in the year-earlier report.
Purchase-money applications were off 2 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis. Without seasonal adjustments, purchase activity slowed just 1 percent and was up 5 percent from the week ended April 28, 2017.
The trade group reported
that applications for mortgages insured by the Federal Housing Administration accounted for 10.3 percent of the weekly total. FHA share was 10.2 percent the prior week and 10.4 percent a year prior.
Another
10.2 percent of the latest activity was for loans guaranteed by the Department of Veterans Affairs. VA share was 10.1 percent in the last report and 10.8 percent in the report from a year ago.
Of all applications submitted, 6.7 percent were for adjustable-rate mortgages. ARM share widened from 6.5 percent a week earlier but was more narrow than 8.4 percent a year earlier.
With fixed interest rates at the highest levels since September 2013, jumbo rates were 11 basis points lower than conforming rates. The spread widened from 9 BPS in the preceding report and 5 BPS in the year-earlier report.
