Fannie Mae reveals latest data
Refinance dollar volume has remained virtually unchanged in the past several weeks, according to a new report from Fannie Mae.
Fannie’s Refinance Application-Level Index (RALI), a weekly series tracking refinance activity and historical trends, found little change in the average RALI dollar volume for the last four weeks, up 2% for the week ending August 19.
Week over week, the dollar volume of refinance applications decreased 1.3% and was 75.7% below last year’s levels. The RALI count posted a 1.2% week-over-week drop and is down 74.6% compared to the same week in 2021.
Fannie Mae chief economist Doug Duncan commented: “Refinance application activity decreased slightly last week and has not changed meaningfully in the past four weeks. Compared to its level a year ago, refi activity is down by approximately 75%, reflecting the higher mortgage rate environment.”
Overall mortgage applications continued to be held down by declining homebuyer demand, as rising rates, challenging affordability, and a gloomier economic outlook kept buyers on the sidelines.
Read more: Mortgage applications hit 22-year low, lending activity suffers
Compared to the third quarter of 2020, when refinance lending was at its peak, the RALI dollar volume was down 80.8%. However, the refi dollar volume was 32.6% above the “refinance slowdown” levels in Q4 2018.
