Mortgage Application Rates Down for Sixth Week

May 16, 2018

An uptick in refinancing helped to boost mortgage applications during the week ending Sept. 27, according to new data from the Mortgage Bankers Association

Mortgage application rates took a slide for the sixth consecutive week, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) covering the week ending May 11.

The Market Composite Index was down 2.7 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis and down three percent on an unadjusted basis. The seasonally adjusted index fell by two percent compared to the previous week and was also down by two percent on an unadjusted basis, although it was also four percent higher than one year ago. The refinance index fell four percent and the refinance share fell week-over-week from 36.3 percent to 35.9 percent, its lowest level since August 2008.

Among the federal programs, the FHA share of total applications increased to 10.3 percent from 10.1 percent the week prior while the VA share of total applications decreased to 10.3 percent from 10.4 percent and the USDA share of total applications increased to 0.8 percent from 0.7 percent.

"Treasury rates increased very slightly over the week, as the general sentiment was that inflation in April was not as strong as expected, despite a solid economic outlook," said MBA Associate Vice President of Economic and Industry Forecasting Joel Kan.

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Phil Hall

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May 16, 2018

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