As the refinance demand continues to dissipate, purchase applications are setting new records.
The latest report from the Mortgage Bankers Association shows that refinance applications fell even further below their eight-year low set last week.
According to data from the MBA’s Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending March 31, 2017, the refinance share of mortgage activity decreased to 42.6% of total applications from 44% the previous week, which was the lowest that figure has been in more than eight years.
Meanwhile, the adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) share of activity remained unchanged at 8.5% of total applications.
On the other side, purchase demand is on the rise, as the average loan size for purchase applications reached a survey high of $318,200.
Mortgage applications, as a whole, decreased 1.6% from one week earlier. And broken up, the Refinance Index decreased 4% from the previous week, while the seasonally adjusted Purchase Index increased 1% from one week earlier.
The Federal Housing Administration’s share of total applications increased to 11.1% from 10.8% the week prior, as the Veterans Affairs’ share of total applications increased to 11.1% from 11.0% the week prior. The United States Department of Agriculture’s share of total applications remained unchanged at 1.0% from the week prior.
Moving into mortgage products, the average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances ($424,100 or less) increased to 4.34% from 4.33%.
The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with jumbo loan balances (greater than $424,100) decreased to 4.24% from 4.26%.
Similarly, the average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages backed by the FHA decreased to 4.15% from 4.24%.
The average contract interest rate for 15-year fixed-rate mortgages remained unchanged at 3.57%, and the average contract interest rate for 5/1 ARMs increased to 3.33% from 3.30%.
