The U.S. homeownership rate was statistically unchanged from last quarter, but appears to be on a sustainable upward trend.
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Mortgage applications fell 1.9% on a seasonally-adjusted basis for the week ending July 19th, 2019, according to the latest Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey from the Mortgage Bankers Association.

On an unadjusted basis, the Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, fell 2% from the previous week. The Refinance Index fell by 2%. The seasonally-adjusted Purchase Index fell 2% from one week earlier, while the unadjusted Purchase Index rose 1%.

The refinance share of mortgage activity fell to 49.8% of applications from 50.0%. The adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) share of activity fell to 4.7%. The FHA share rose to 11.3% from 10.6%, the VA share rose to 13.1% from 12.9%, and the USDA share remained unchanged at 0.6%.

“Mortgage applications were down last week, even as rates moved lower across the board, with the 30-year fixed rate at 4.08 percent. Refinance activity was lower, but we did see government refinance applications increase, driven solely by a 12 percent rise in FHA applications,” says Joel Kan, MBA’s associate vice president of economic and industry forecasting. “Mortgage rates right now are comparable to the average rate of 4.10 percent for June, but refinances last week were 7 percent lower than last month. This is an indication that as we see rates lower for longer, borrowers need more of a drop in rates to consider refinancing.”

The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances ($484,350 or less) fell to 4.08% from 4.12% the previous week. Points for 80% loan-to-value ratio (LTV) loans fell to 0.33 from 0.38. (All 80% LTV loan reports include the origination fee.) The effective rate decreased from last week.

The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with jumbo loan balances (greater than $484,350) fell to 4.04% from 4.07%. Points for 80% LTV loans rose to 0.25 from 0.21, and the effective rate decreased from last week.

The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages backed by the FHA fell to 3.98% from 4.01%. Points for 80% LTV loans rose to 0.31 from 0.28, and the effective rate decreased from last week.

The average contract interest rate for 15-year fixed-rate mortgages fell to 3.45% from 3.48%. Points for 80% LTV loans remained unchanged at 0.32, and the effective rate decreased from last week.

The average contract interest rate for 5/1 ARMs fell to 3.57% from 3.58%. Points for 80% LTV loans remained unchanged at 0.27, and the effective rate decreased from last week.