Refinance activity maintained its weakening momentum, pulling down the weekly volume of overall applications for residential loans.
A 1 percent drop from one week previous was recorded for the Market Composite Index for the week that ended on March 25.
The index, which reportedly is a yardstick for mortgage application volume, was adjusted to reflect seasonal variations in applications.
Without any seasonal adjustments, however, the index was still off 1 percent.
That was according to the Mortgage Bankers Association, which includes the index in its Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey. The survey reportedly reflects 75 percent of all retail home loan applications.
The weakness in new applications was driven by refinance applications, which retreated 3 percent from the week ended March 30 on a seasonally adjusted basis.
Applications for refinances have slowed each week since the report for the week that ended on Feb. 12.
In line with slower refinance activity was thinner refinance share, which fell to 52.4 percent from 53.9 percent.
But purchase applications ascended 2 percent. Foregoing seasonal adjustments, purchase activity was up 3 percent for the week and 21 percent higher than the same week in 2015.
MBA said that adjustable-rate mortgage applications accounted for 4.9 percent of total applications. ARM share
was no different than in the last report.
The trade group reported that
applications for loans insured by the Federal Housing Administration made up 11.5 percent of all mortgage applications. FHA share thinned from 11.8 percent a week earlier.
Applications for loans guaranteed by the Department of Veterans Affairs a represented 12.9 percent of overall activity, widening from 12.6 percent the prior week.
Interest rates on jumbo mortgages were 12 basis
points lower than rates on conforming loans, according to MBA. The jumbo-conforming spread ballooned from a negative 8 BPS in the last report.
