Mortgage Loan Applications Fall Slightly

Applications for mortgages at major U.S. lenders dipped 0.2 percent in the past week even as interest rates fell, the Mortgage Bankers Association reported in its weekly survey Wednesday.

Total applications - including purchase loans and all mortgage refinancing loans - fell 0.2 percent week-on-week and were up about 17 percent compared with the same week a year ago.

The number of applications to refinance an existing mortgage dropped 0.5 percent in the past week, after hitting an 18-month high two weeks prior.

Refinance mortgage applications are up about 41 percent compared with the same week a year ago.

In all, mortgage refinance activity accounted for 45.1 percent of home loan applications.

The volume of home loan applications to buy a home rose 0.1 percent. Home purchase loan activity is up about 2 percent compared with a year ago.

By contrast, U.S. home sales are down about 5.5 percent from the same time last year, even as home mortgage rates have remained extremely low, by historical standards.

Mortgage rates inched lower again last week.

The average mortgage rates for a 30-year fixed-rate loan dropped to 6.04 percent from 6.06 percent, while the average rate for a 15-year fixed mortgage fell to 5.77 percent from 5.79 percent. Average rates for one-year ARMs declined to 5.84 percent from 5.88 percent.

ARMs accounted for 20.2 percent of loans, down from 20.9 percent.

SOURCE: MarketWatch