Mortgage Application Levels Enjoy Upward Mobility

It was a highly caffeinated week for the mortgage market, with purchase and refinance activity taking strong upward swings, according to the latest data from the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA).

The trade group’s Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending April 8 found the Market Composite Index up 10 percent on both a seasonally adjusted basis and unadjusted basis from one week earlier. The seasonally adjusted Purchase Index took an eight percent leap skyward from one week earlier and reached its highest level since October 2015, while the unadjusted Purchase Index increased nine percent and was 24 percent higher than the same week one year ago. And not to be outdone, the Refinance Index increased 11 percent from the previous week to its highest level since February as the refinance share of mortgage activity increased to 54.9 percent of total applications from 54.5 percent in the previous week.

“Helped by a persistently strong job market and low rates, applications for both conventional and government home purchase loans increased last week,” said Mike Fratantoni, MBA’s chief economist. “The purchase index was at its second highest level since May 2010. Applications to refinance also increased as the 30-year contract rate decreased to its lowest level since January 2015.”