15-Year Benefit Surges in Weekly Mortgage Market Index


DALLAS — (Dec. 2, 2013) The benefit of opting for a 15-year mortgage increased significantly as interest rates rose. The holiday week took a big toll on new business.

The U.S. Mortgage Market Index from LoanSifter and Mortgage Daily closed out the week ended Nov. 29 at 118. The index, which reflects average pricing inquiries per LoanSifter user, sank from 171 seven days earlier. No seasonal adjustment was made.

Business plummeted from 12 months earlier, when the index was 259 — though the year-earlier week did not include the Thanksgiving holiday. Year-earlier figures were revised to reflect statistics from the same data provider.

Out front of the weekly decline were inquiries for adjustable-rate mortgages, which tumbled 60 percent from the week ended Nov. 20. ARM activity was down nearly a third from the same week in 2012.

ARM share sank, falling to 4.6 percent from 11.4 percent in the last report and 8.6 percent at the same point last year.

Conventional business was down more than a third and was 42 percent lower than a year prior.

Compared to seven days earlier, refinance activity fell by exactly a third and was off by 60 percent from the week ended Nov. 30, 2012. Refinance share slipped to 45.8 percent from 47.2 percent and slid from 77.7 percent in the same week last year. The most recent week’s share was comprised of a 28.9 percent rate-term share and a 16.9 percent cashout share.

A nearly one-third week-over-week drop was recorded for jumbo inquiries, and the category has fallen 37 percent on a year-over-year basis.

Jumbo share slipped to just under 4.0 percent from just above 4.0 percent and was 4.2 percent one year prior.

Pricing inquiries for jumbo mortgages yielded quotes that were 37 basis points higher than for conforming loans. The jumbo-conforming spread was up from 35 BPS in the prior report but better than 42 BPS in the same week during 2012.

A 30 percent drop from a week earlier was reported for purchase activity, though purchase business was up 56 percent from 12 months ago.

This week’s smallest decline was with inquiries for loans insured by the Federal Housing Administration: 24 percent. FHA activity was off 16 percent from a year earlier.

FHA share was 22.6 percent, wider than 20.3 percent seven days prior and 16.0 percent a year prior.

Conforming fixed-rate 30-year loans were priced at 4.960 percent, climbing from 4.521 percent in the previous report. Thirty-year rates averaged 3.606 percent in the year-earlier report.

Fifteen-year borrowers were quoted rates that were 135 BPS better than 30-year borrowers. The spread widened significantly from 95 BPS in the last report and 62 BPS in the year-earlier period.