Lower interest rates pushed mortgage activity up in the U.S. for the week ending May 18, according to a weekly mortgage application survey released today by the Mortgage Bankers Association. Applications for home loans increased 3.8 percent from the previous week, thanks to a 5.6 percent increase in refinances. It’s the third straight week of refinance gains and the highest level of refinance activity since early February. [more]

The reemergence of sovereign debt struggles in Europe was partly responsible for a 9.2 percent increase in U.S. mortgage applications for the week ending May 11, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association, which released its weekly mortgage application survey today.

The increased activity was entirely attributable to a 13 percent increase in refinance applications, as activity for mortgages for home purchases fell 2.4 percent. Refinances now make up 74.9 percent of all mortgage activity, up from 72.1 percent the previous week. [more]

Mortgage applications increased 1.7 percent for the week ending May 4, according to weekly data released today by the Mortgage Bankers Associations, as more homeowners and home buyers dipped into the private mortgage market. Applications for mortgages for purchases ticked up 3.4 percent behind a 5.4 percent increase in activity in the so-called “conventional,” or non-government affiliated market. Similarly, even though activity in the government-backed refinance market has decreased 2.3 percent, overall refinances actually jumped 1.3 percent. [more]

After a one-week respite, declining applications for mortgage refinances dragged down the entire mortgage application market in the week ending April 20, according to weekly data released today by the Mortgage Bankers Association. Applications for mortgages for home purchases increased 2.7 percent last week, but refinance application volume decreased 5.6 percent, pushing total applications down 3.8 percent for the week. [more]

As interest rates returned to record lows, mortgage applications increased 6.9 percent for the week ending April 13, according to weekly data released today by the Mortgage Bankers Association. For a change, the increase can be attributed to a 13.5 percent rise in applications for mortgage refinances, which had previously been on a two month slide. On the other hand, applications for home purchases fell 6.5 percent, defying a recent upward trend. Home purchases accounted for just 24.8 percent of applications, compared to 29.5 percent the previous week, as a result. [more]

Applications for mortgages in the U.S. fell 2.4 percent for the week ending April 6, according to weekly data from the Mortgage Bankers Association. As has been the case for much of the last two months, a drop in refinance applications powered the decline, as they fell 3.1 percent. Applications for mortgages for home purchases stumbled 0.5 percent. The four week moving average for mortgage purchase applications is up 2.19 percent, while its down 3.45 percent for refinances. [more]

Thanks to the impending rising Federal Housing Authority mortgage insurance premiums, mortgage applications picked up by 4.8 percent for the week ending March 30, according to weekly data from the Mortgage Bankers Association released today after weeks of declines. [more]

Mortgage applications fell 2.7 percent the week ending March 23, according to weekly data from the Mortgage Bankers Association. Once again, plummeting applications for mortgage refinances are the culprit for the declining mortgage market, as refinances decreased for the sixth consecutive week, this time by 4.6 percent. Mortgage refinance applications have already failed 24.2 percent since hitting a 2012 peak in February. [more]

For a third consecutive week a decline in mortgage refinance applications has weighed down the U.S. mortgage market. According to weekly data released today by the Mortgage Bankers Association, total mortgage applications declined 7.4 percent for the week ending March 16. [more]

Overall U.S. mortgage applications continue to decline as fewer people seek to refinance their home loans. According to weekly data from the Mortgage Bankers Association, total applications decreased 2.4 percent for the week ending March 9 — even as applications for mortgage purchases increased 4.1 percent — because refinance applications fell 4.4 percent. [more]