An improved (albeit slightly) mortgage interest rate environment helped push the volume of mortgage applications higher during the week ending November 17. The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) said its Market Composite Index, a measure of that volume, grew 3.0 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier. However, it declined fractionally on an unadjusted basis. The Refinance Index increased 2 percent from the previous week and was 4 percent lower than the same week one year ago. The refinance share of mortgage activity represented 32.4 percent of total applications, up from 31.9 percent the previous week. [refiappschart] The seasonally adjusted Purchase Index rose 4.0 percent from the prior week but declined 1.0 percent unadjusted. Purchase applications were 20 percent lower than the same week one year ago. [purchaseappschart] “U.S. bond yields continued to move lower as incoming data signaled a softer economy and more signs of cooling inflation. Most mortgage rates in our survey decreased, with the 30-year fixed mortgage rate decreasing to 7.41 percent, the lowest rate in two months,” said Joel Kan, MBA’s Vice President and Deputy Chief Economist. “ Mortgage applications increased to their highest level in six weeks but remain at very low lev els. Purchase applications were up almost four percent over the week, on a seasonally adjusted basis, as both conventional and government purchase loans saw increases. The average loan size on a purchase application was $403,600, the lowest since January 2023. This is consistent with other sources of home sales data showing a gradually increasing first-time homebuyer share.”
