U.S. Mortgage Applications Volume Dips in Mid-July
The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, decreased 2.5 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier. On an unadjusted basis, the Index increased 22 percent compared with the previous week.
The Refinance Index increased 2 percent from the previous week. The seasonally adjusted Purchase Index decreased 5 percent from one week earlier. The unadjusted Purchase Index increased 19 percent compared with the previous week and was 1 percent higher than the same week one year ago.
The refinance share of mortgage activity increased to 36.5 percent of total applications from 34.8 percent the previous week. The adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) share of activity decreased to 6.1 percent of total applications.
The FHA share of total applications increased to 10.6 percent from 10.0 percent the week prior. The VA share of total applications decreased to 10.2 percent from 11.3 percent the week prior. The USDA share of total applications decreased to 0.7 percent from 0.8 percent the week prior.
The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances ($453,100 or less) increased to 4.77 percent from 4.76 percent, with points increasing to 0.46 from 0.43 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent loan-to-value ratio (LTV) loans. The effective rate increased from last week.
The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with jumbo loan balances (greater than $453,100) decreased to 4.66 percent from 4.68 percent, with points increasing to 0.30 from 0.24 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent LTV loans. The effective rate increased from last week.
The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages backed by the FHA decreased to 4.78 percent from 4.80 percent, with points decreasing to 0.69 from 0.75 (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 4.22 percent from 4.18 percent, with points decreasing to 0.42 from 0.46 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent LTV loans. The effective rate increased from last week.
The average contract interest rate for 5/1 ARMs decreased to 4.12 percent from 4.13 percent, with points increasing to 0.39 from 0.36 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent LTV loans. The effective rate remained unchanged from last week.
According to the Mortgage Bankers Association's Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending August 31, 2018, U.S. mortgage applications decreased 0.1 percent from one week earlier.
According to new U.S. housing market research by Zillow, the combination of rising home prices and interest rates creates a doubly challenging environment for would-be home buyers, making monthly mortgage payments on even modestly priced homes more of a financial burden.
According to Freddie Mac's latest Primary Mortgage Market Survey for late August 2018, U.S. mortgage rates were marginally higher over the past week. Mortgage rates are showing a steadiness last seen in the fall of 2016.
According to CBRE's latest U.S. Data Center Trends Report, demand from large cloud users has set the U.S. data center market on pace to break 2017's record leasing activity.
U.S. architecture firm billings growth slowed again in July 2018 but remained positive overall for the tenth consecutive month.
According to the National Association of Realtors, existing-home sales subsided for the fourth straight month in July 2018 to their slowest pace in over two years. The West was the only major region with an increase in sales last month.
Comment with
Copyright 2010 - 2018 WORLD PROPERTY JOURNAL, INC. All Rights Reserved.