MBA: July New Home Purchase Mortgage Applications Up 0.2%

Mortgage applications for new home purchases rose by 0.2 percent in July from June and by nearly 3.6 percent from a year ago, the Mortgage Bankers Association reported this morning.

The MBA Builder Applications Survey said by product type, conventional loans composed 72.1 percent of loan applications, FHA loans composed 15.3 percent, RHS/USDA loans composed 1.1 percent and VA loans composed 11.4 percent. The average loan size of new homes increased from $333,033 in June to $337,775 in July..

Changes do not include any adjustment for typical seasonal patterns.

MBA estimated new single-family home sales at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 637,000 units in July, a increase of 8.5 percent from June (626,000 units). On an unadjusted basis, MBA estimated 53,000 new home sales in July, unchanged from June.

“New home sales for the month reached 637,000 units, the strongest pace since April, said Joel Kan, MBA Associate Vice President of Economic and Industry Forecasting. “This was likely supported by the May surge in housing starts and is a reflection of the strength of demand due to the healthy economy. Because inventory of existing homes remains quite tight, this increase in new home supply will be welcomed by the market.”

The new home sales estimate is derived using mortgage application information from the BAS, as well as assumptions regarding market coverage and other factors.

The MBA Builder Application Survey tracks application volume from mortgage subsidiaries of home builders across the country. Using these data, as well as data from other sources, MBA provides an early estimate of new home sales volumes at the national, state and metro level. These data also provide information regarding types of loans used by new home buyers. Official new home sales estimates are conducted by the Census Bureau on a monthly basis. In those data, new home sales are recorded at contract signing, which is typically coincident with the mortgage application.

For additional information on MBA’s Builder Applications Survey, click https://www.mba.org/news-research-and-resources/forecasts-data-and-reports/single-family-research/servicing-operations-study-and-forum-for-prime-and-specialty-servicers-x75411.