Fewer prospective borrowers were applying for new mortgages during the most recent week, and both refinancing and purchase financing activity were impacted.
A benchmark for residential loan application activity, the Market Composite Index, declined 4 percent from one week earlier in the week that ended on May 27.
The index was seasonally adjusted. Even without any adjustments for seasonal factors, the index still descended by 5 percent from the week that ended on May 20.
The Mortgage Bankers Association released the index as part of its
Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey, which it says covers 75 percent of all retail residential mortgage applications.
MBA reported that applications for refinances fell a seasonally adjusted 4 percent from the previous report. Still, refinance share widened to 54.3 percent from 53.7 percent the previous week
and 49 percent in the same week the previous year.
A 5 percent week-over-week drop was recorded for purchase-money applications. Foregoing any seasonal adjustments, the Purchase Index retreated 6 percent from the prior week but ascended 28 percent from the same week the prior year.
The share of overall applications that were for mortgages insured by the Federal Housing Administration was 12.5 percent, slightly thinner than 12.7 percent the previous week
and more narrow than 14.9 percent a year previous.
Department of Veterans Affairs applications accounted for 12.0 percent of total volume, widening from 11.5 percent in the last report and no different than in the year-prior report.
Applications for adjustable-rate mortgages made up 5.0 percent of the most-recent activity,
slimmer than 5.7 percent in the week-earlier report and 6.1 percent in the year-earlier report.
Average rates on jumbo mortgages were 4 basis points less than conforming rates. The jumbo-conforming spread expanded from a negative 3 BPS a week earlier
and just a negative 1 basis point a year earlier.
