New mortgage activity was depressed over the past week, and it was purchase-money business that was out front of the decline. Adjustable-rate activity, though, ascended.
As of the week ended March 31, the
Mortgage Daily U.S. Mortgage Market Index was 148. The index is a measure of average per-user rate locks by clients of OpenClose.
Compared to the previous week, the index, an indication of upcoming originations, tumbled 12 percent. There are no adjustments made to the MMI for seasonal variations.
Business also slowed from the same week last year by 13 percent.
The biggest impact on this week’s activity was from purchase financing, with the Purchase MMI tumbling 15 percent from the week ended March 24 to 99. Purchase business was down 12 percent from the upwardly revised level for the same week in 2016.
A 13 percent week-over-week decline left the Conventional MMI at 92.
Close behind was the Government MMI, which fell 11 percent to 56. Government share widened, however, to 37.6 percent from 37.0 percent. The most-recent share was comprised of a 26.5 percent FHA share and an 11.2 percent VA share.
Rate locks for refinances retreated 5 percent on a week-over-week basis but sank 15 percent from the downwardly revised level for the week ended April 1, 2016.
Refinance share widened to 33.1 percent from 30.7 percent but thinned from the downwardly revised 33.9 percent share the same week last year. The latest share consisted of a 17.0 percent rate-term share and a 16.0 percent cashout share.
Jumbo business dipped 3 percent from the last report and declined 19 percent from the year-earlier report. But the 5.1 percent jumbo share was fatter than 4.7 percent the prior week, though it was more narrow than 5.5 percent a year prior.
Interest rates on jumbo mortgages were 6 basis points lower than conforming rates. The jumbo-conforming spread thinned from a negative 11 BPS a week earlier and widened from a negative 5 BPS a year earlier.
The only category to experience a week-over-week increase was the adjustable-rate category: up 9 percent. ARM business slipped 2 percent on a year-over-year basis. ARM share widened to 9.0 percent from 7.3 percent last week and 8.0 percent a year ago.
