Refis hit another 15-month high

With mortgage interest rates lately hitting record lows week after week, loan application volume, particularly amongst those seeking to refinance, is picking up. Refinancing applications rose 2.8 percent, reaching another 15-month high, in the week that ended Aug. 27, according to a new report from the Mortgage Bankers Association. Purchasing applications also increased by 1.8 percent, though they were down 37 percent over one year ago. Meanwhile, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage registered a drop in interest rates to 4.43 percent from 4.55 percent the week before. Its 15-year counterpart saw a similar decline, to 3.88 percent from 3.91 percent. Michael Fratantoni, vice president of research and economics for the MBA, predicted that the relatively low volume of purchase applications foreshadows a rough couple of months ahead in the housing market. “The sharp decline in MBA’s Purchase Application index in May had provided a clear leading indicator of the
drops in new and existing home sales that were reported for June and July,” he said. “Despite the slight increase in purchase activity in the past week, the continued low level of purchase applications indicates we are unlikely to see an increase in new home sales reported for August or existing home sales reported for September.” TRD