Mortgage applications fell 2.4% on a seasonally-adjusted basis for the week ending July 5th, 2019, according to the Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey from the Mortgage Bankers Association. (This week’s report includes an adjustment for the July 4th holiday.)
On an unadjusted basis, the Market Composite Index fell 22% from the previous week. The Refinance Index fell 7% over the same period. The seasonally-adjusted Purchase Index rose 2% from the previous
"Mortgage applications were down slightly, even after adjusting for the July 4th holiday, as we saw opposing moves in purchase and refinance applications over the week. Purchase applications increased from the previous week and were up 5% from a year ago, a continuation of the strong annual growth that we saw in the first half of 2019. Refinance activity decreased over 6% and the refinance share of applications fell back below 50%, even as the 30-year, fixed-rate declined 3 basis points to 4.04 percent," says Joel Kan, MBA's associate vice president of economic and industry forecasting. "Borrowers have been less sensitive to low rates as many borrowers have either recently refinanced or are likely waiting for rates to fall even further. Other mortgage rates in our survey were unchanged or slightly higher than in the previous week."
The refinance share of mortgage activity fell to 48.7%, down from 51.0% the previous week. The adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) share rose to 5.3% of applications. The FHA share remained unchanged at 10.1%, the VA share rose to 13.2% from 12.8%, and the USDA share rose to 0.7% from 0.6%.
The average contract interest rate for 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances ($484,350 or less) fell to 4.04% from 4.07% the previous week. Points for 80% loan-to-value ratio (LTV) loans rose to 0.37 from 0.36. (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) rose to 4.03% from 4.00%. Points for 80% LTV loans rose to 0.27 from 0.25, and the effective rate increased from last week.
The average contract interest rate for 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages backed by the FHA remained unchanged at 3.97%. Points for 80% LTV loans remained unchanged at 0.30, and the effective rate increased from last week.
The average contract interest rate for 15-year, fixed-rate mortgages remained unchanged at 3.42%. Points for 80% LTV loans remained unchanged at 0.32, and the effective rate was unchanged from last week.
The average contract interest rate for 5/1 ARMs rose to 3.56% from 3.46%. Points for 80% LTV loans rose to 0.28 from 0.26, and the effective rate increased from last week.
