MBA Weekly Survey June 29, 2022: Applications Increase Again

Mortgage applications rose for the third week in a row, the Mortgage Bankers Association reported Wednesday in its Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending June 24.

Mortgage applications increased 0.7 percent from one week earlier, MBA’s Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey said. The results include an adjustment for Juneteenth holiday.

The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, increased 0.7 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier. On an unadjusted basis, the Index decreased 20 percent compared with the previous week. The Refinance Index increased 2 percent from the previous week and was 80 percent lower than the same week one year ago. The seasonally adjusted Purchase Index increased 0.1 percent from one week earlier. The unadjusted Purchase Index decreased 21 percent compared with the previous week and was 24 percent lower than the same week one year ago.

“Mortgage rates continue to experience large swings,” said Joel Kan, MBA Associate Vice President of Economic and Industry Forecasting. He noted the 30-year fixed rate declined 14 basis points last week to 5.84 percent after increasing 65 basis points during the past three weeks. Rates are still significantly higher than they were a year ago, when the 30-year fixed rate was at 3.2 percent.

“The decline in mortgage rates led to a slight increase in refinancing, driven by an uptick in conventional loans,” Kan said. “However, refinances are still 80 percent lower than a year ago and more than 60 percent below the historical average. Overall purchase activity has weakened in recent months due to the quick jump in mortgage rates, high home prices, and growing economic uncertainty.”

The refinance share of mortgage activity increased to 30.3 percent of total applications from 29.7 percent the previous week. The adjustable-rate mortgage share of activity decreased to 10.1 percent of total applications.

The FHA share of total applications remained unchanged at 12.0 percent from the week prior. The VA share of total applications increased to 11.2 percent from 10.7 percent the week prior. The USDA share of total applications increased to 0.6 percent from 0.5 percent the week prior.

The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances ($647,200 or less) decreased to 5.84 percent from 5.98 percent, with points decreasing to 0.64 from 0.77 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent loan-to-value ratio 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 $647,200) decreased to 5.42 percent from 5.49 percent, with points decreasing to 0.28 from 0.45 (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 remained at 5.62 percent, with points decreasing to 1.15 from 1.18 (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 increased to 5.06 percent from 5.05 percent, with points decreasing to 0.72 from 0.86 (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 decreased to 4.64 percent from 4.78 percent, with points decreasing to 0.72 from 0.84 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent LTV loans. The effective rate decreased from last week.