Mortgage Applications Decrease in Latest MBA Weekly Survey

Mortgage applications decreased 0.2 percent from one week earlier, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Weekly Applications Survey for the week ending July 5, 2024.  Last week’s results included an adjustment for the July 4th holiday.

The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, decreased 0.2 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier. On an unadjusted basis, the Index decreased 20 percent compared with the previous week. The Refinance Index decreased 2 percent from the previous week and was 28 percent higher than the same week one year ago. The seasonally adjusted Purchase Index increased 1 percent from one week earlier. The unadjusted Purchase Index decreased 19 percent compared with the previous week and was 13 percent lower than the same week one year ago.

“The recent uptick in mortgage rates has slowed demand. Mortgage applications were essentially flat last week, as mortgage rates remained around 7 percent,” said Joel Kan, MBA’s Vice President and Deputy Chief Economist. “Purchase activity picked up slightly, driven primarily by increases in FHA and VA applications. Refinance applications decreased for the fourth consecutive week, in line with higher rates. Although home equity gains have been significant in recent years, most borrowers do not have much of an incentive to refinance at current rates.”   

The refinance share of mortgage activity decreased to 34.9 percent of total applications from 35.7 percent the previous week. The adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) share of activity increased to 6.2 percent of total applications.

The FHA share of total applications decreased to 12.5 percent from 13.1 percent the week prior. The VA share of total applications increased to 13.7 percent from 12.9 percent the week prior. The USDA share of total applications increased to 0.4 percent from 0.3 percent the week prior.

The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances ($766,550 or less) decreased to 7.00 percent from 7.03 percent, with points decreasing to 0.60 from 0.62 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent loan-to-value ratio (LTV) loans.  The effective rate decreased from last week.

The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with jumbo loan balances (greater than $766,550) increased to 7.13 percent from 7.11 percent, with points decreasing to 0.38 from 0.50 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent LTV loans. The effective rate decreased from last week.  

The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages backed by the FHA decreased to 6.87 percent from 6.90 percent, with points decreasing to 0.92 from 0.95 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent LTV loans. The effective rate decreased from last week.

The average contract interest rate for 15-year fixed-rate mortgages increased to 6.63 percent from 6.56 percent, with points increasing to 0.61 from 0.54 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent LTV loans. The effective rate increased from last week.

The average contract interest rate for 5/1 ARMs decreased to 6.22 percent from 6.38 percent, with points increasing to 0.6 from 0.54 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent LTV loans. The effective rate decreased from last week. 

The survey covers over 75 percent of all U.S. retail residential mortgage applications, and has been conducted weekly since 1990. Respondents include mortgage bankers, commercial banks, and thrifts. Base period and value for all indexes is March 16, 1990=100.

Contact:

Falen Taylor – Media Contact – ftaylor@mba.org – (202) 557-2771

Source: Mortgage Bankers Association