MBA Weekly Survey Nov. 8: Mortgage Applications Increase

Mortgage applications increased 2.5 percent from one week earlier, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending November 3, 2023.

The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, increased 2.5 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier. On an unadjusted basis, the Index increased 1 percent compared with the previous week. The Refinance Index increased 2 percent from the previous week and was 7 percent lower than the same week one year ago. The seasonally adjusted Purchase Index increased 3 percent from one week earlier. The unadjusted Purchase Index increased 1 percent compared with the previous week and was 20 percent lower than the same week one year ago.

“The 30-year fixed mortgage rate dropped by 25 basis points to 7.61 percent, the largest single week decline since July 2022,” said Joel Kan, MBA’s Vice President and Deputy Chief Economist. “Last week’s decrease in rates was driven by the U.S. Treasury’s issuance update, the Fed striking a dovish tone in the November FOMC statement, and data indicating a slower job market. Applications for both purchase and refinance loans were up over the week but remained at low levels. The purchase index is still more than 20 percent behind last year’s pace, as many homebuyers remain on the sidelines until more for-sale inventory becomes available.”

The refinance share of mortgage activity increased to 31.4 percent of total applications from 31.2 percent the previous week. The adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) share of activity decreased to 9.8 percent of total applications.

The FHA share of total applications remained unchanged at 14.7 percent from the week prior. The VA share of total applications increased to 10.5 percent from 10.1 percent the week prior. The USDA share of total applications remained unchanged at 0.5 percent from the week prior.

The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances ($726,200 or less) decreased to 7.61 percent from 7.86 percent, with points decreasing to 0.69 from 0.73 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent loan-to-value ratio (LTV) 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 $726,200) decreased to 7.58 percent from 7.80 percent, with points decreasing to 0.65 from 0.67 (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 decreased to 7.36 percent from 7.57 percent, with points decreasing to 0.91 from 1.03 (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 decreased to 6.98 percent from 7.14 percent, with points decreasing to 0.88 from 1.22 (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 6.76 percent from 6.77 percent, with points decreasing to 0.80 from 1.46 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent LTV loans. The effective rate decreased from last week.

If you would like to purchase a subscription of MBA’s Weekly Applications Survey, visit www.mba.org/WeeklyApps.

The survey covers over 75 percent of all U.S. retail residential mortgage applications, and has been conducted weekly since 1990. Respondents include mortgage bankers, commercial banks and thrifts. Base period and value for all indexes is March 16, 1990=100.