The refi share of mortgage activity fell to its lowest level in nearly a decade
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The volume of mortgage applications declined again during the week ending May 25 as refinances saw their share of overall activity fall to its lowest level since August 2008, according to the Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey released by the Mortgage Bankers Association.
The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, fell 2.9% on a seasonally adjusted basis and slipped 4% on an unadjusted basis. The Refinance Index sank to its lowest level since December 2000 after dropping 5% during the period. The Purchase Index fell 2% on a seasonally adjusted basis and declined 3% on an unadjusted basis. The unadjusted Purchase Index was 2% higher than the same week one year ago.
Refinances saw their share of overall application activity fall to its lowest level since August 2008. Refinance applications accounted for 35.3% of total applications during the week, down from 35.7%. The adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) share of activity decreased to 6.7% of total applications.
FHA applications accounted for 9.9% of applications, down from 10.3% in the prior period. The VA share of total applications increased to 9.9% from 9.8%. The share of USDA applications was steady at 0.8%.
All mortgage types saw their average contract interest rates decrease from the previous period.
The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage with conforming loan balances averaged 4.84%, down from 4.86%, with points decreasing to 0.47 from 0.52 for 80% loan-to-value ratio loans. Rates for the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage with jumbo loan balances decreased to 4.73% from 4.81%, with points decreasing to 0.36 from 0.42.
The average for the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage backed by the FHA decreased to 4.85% from 4.9%, with points increasing to 0.88 from 0.85. Rates for the 15-year fixed-rate mortgage decreased to 4.24% from 4.31%, with points decreasing to 0.51 from 0.56. The average for 5/1 ARMs slipped to 4.11% from 4.12%, with points increasing to 0.62 from 0.46.
