Over the course of the two-week period ending December 29th, 2017, mortgage applications fell by 2.8% on a seasonally-adjusted basis, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey. This week’s results include adjustments to account for the Christmas holiday.
On an unadjusted basis, the Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, fell 42% from two weeks ago. The Refinance Index fell 7% over the course of two weeks. The seasonally-adjusted Purchase Index rose 1% from two weeks earlier, while the unadjusted Purchase Index fell 42%.
Note that the index changes above are calculated relative to the prior two weeks, while the following compositional and rate measures cover only the previous week.
The refinance share of mortgage activity rose to 52% of total applications, up from 51.8% the previous week. The adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) share of activity fell to 5.3% over the same period. The FHA share increased to 10.4% from 10.3% the previous week, the VA share of total applications rose to 11.2% from 10.6%, and the USDA share increased to 0.8% from 0.7% the week prior.
The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances ($424,100 or less) remained unchanged from the previous week at 4.25%. (Note that conforming loan limits are set to rise in the new year.) Points for 80% loan-to-value ratio (LTV) loans rose to 0.36 from 0.35 over the same period, and the effective rate increased from last week. (All 80% LTV loan point reports include the origination fee.)
The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with jumbo loan balances (greater than $424,100) fell to 4.13% from 4.21%. Points for 80% LTV loans rose to 0.21 from 0.20, and the effective rate decreased from last week.
The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages backed by the FHA rose to 4.17% from 4.15%. Points for 80% LTV loans rose to 0.40 from 0.37, and the effective rate increased from last week.
The average contract interest rate for 15-year fixed-rate mortgages fell to 3.65% from 3.66%. Points for 80% LTV loans fell to 0.34 from 0.37, and the effective rate decreased from last week.
The average contract interest rate for 5/1 ARMs fell to 3.40% from 3.56%. Points for 80% LTV loans rose to 0.73 from 0.46, and the effective rate decreased from last week.
