WASHINGTON, D.C. (March 7, 2012) — Mortgage applications decreased 1.2 percent from one week earlier, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending March 2, 2012.
The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, decreased 1.2 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier. On an unadjusted basis, the Index increased 10.2 percent compared with the previous week. The Refinance Index decreased 2.0 percent from the previous week. The seasonally adjusted Purchase Index increased 2.1 percent from one week earlier. The unadjusted Purchase Index increased 14.7 percent compared with the previous week and was 7.8 percent lower than the same week one year ago. Last week’s results included an adjustment for the Presidents Day holiday.
The four week moving average for the seasonally adjusted Market Index is down 1.77 percent. The four week moving average is down 0.47 percent for the seasonally adjusted Purchase Index, while this average is down 2.04 percent for the Refinance Index.
The refinance share of mortgage activity decreased to 77.0 percent of total applications, the lowest since December 2011, from 77.9 percent the previous week. The adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) share of activity increased to 5.4 percent from 5.0 percent of total applications from the previous week.
During the month of February, the investor share of applications for home purchase was at 6.1 percent, a decrease from 6.4 percent in January. This change was led by a decline in the New England region. In addition, the share of purchase mortgages for second homes decreased to 5.8 percent in February from 5.9 percent in January.
The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances ($417,500 or less) decreased to 4.06 percent from 4.07 percent, with points decreasing to 0.50 from 0.51 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent loan-to-value ratio (LTV) loans. The effective rate decreased from last week.
The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with jumbo loan balances (greater than $417,500) decreased to 4.33 percent from 4.34 percent, with points remaining unchanged at 0.40 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent LTV loans. The effective rate decreased from last week.
The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages backed by the FHA increased to 3.87 percent from 3.86 percent, with points decreasing to 0.70 from 0.80 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent LTV loans. The effective rate decreased from last week.
The average contract interest rate for 15-year fixed-rate mortgages remained unchanged at 3.36 percent, with points remaining unchanged at 0.38 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent LTV loans. The effective rate decreased from last week.
The average contract interest rate for 5/1 ARMs remained unchanged at 2.78 percent, with points decreasing to 0.35 from 0.38 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent LTV loans. The effective rate decreased from last week.
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The survey covers over 75 percent of all U.S. retail residential mortgage applications, and has been conducted weekly since 1990. Respondents include mortgage bankers, commercial banks and thrifts. Base period and value for all indexes is March 16, 1990=100.
