Mortgage applications increased 3.3% from last week's numbers on a seasonally adjusted basis, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending April 12, 2024.
On an unadjusted basis, the Market Composite Index increased by 4% compared with the previous week. The Refinance Index increased a small 0.5% from a week ago but was 11% higher than the same week one year ago.
The seasonally adjusted Purchase Index increased by 5% from one week earlier. The unadjusted Purchase Index increased by 6% compared with the previous week and was 10% lower than the same week one year ago.
“Rates increased for the second consecutive week, driven by incoming data indicating that the economy remains strong and inflation is proving tougher to bring down. Mortgage rates increased across the board, with the 30-year fixed rate at 7.13% – reaching its highest level since December 2023,” said MBA’s Vice President and Deputy Chief Economist, Joel Kan. “Despite these higher rates, application activity picked up, possibly as some borrowers decided to act in case rates continue to rise. Purchase applications drove most of the increase, but remain at low levels of around 10% behind last year’s pace. Refinance applications increased very slightly, driven by a 3% gain in conventional applications.”
The refinance share of mortgage activity decreased slightly to 32.1% of total applications from 33.3% the previous week. The adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) share of activity increased to 7.3% of total applications.
The FHA share of total applications increased to 12.3% from 12.1% the week prior. Meanwhile, the VA share of total applications shrank to 12.4% from 14.0% the week prior. The USDA share of total applications remained steady and unchanged from last week's numbers, holding at 0.4%.
Other takeaways:
- The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances ($766,550 or less) increased to 7.13% from 7.01%, with points increasing to 0.65 from 0.59 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent loan-to-value ratio (LTV) loans. The effective rate increased from last week.
- The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with jumbo loan balances (greater than $766,550) increased to 7.40% from 7.13%, with points decreasing to 0.46 from 0.56 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent LTV loans. The effective rate increased from last week.
- The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages backed by the FHA increased to 6.90% from 6.80%, with points increasing to 0.99 from 0.93 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent LTV loans. The effective rate increased from last week.
