The MBA’s Market Composite Index measuring total loan volume fell 0.9% on a seasonally adjusted basis and 1% unadjusted from the previous week for the period ending April 30. Total application volume was down 5.9% compared to the same week a year ago.
“There was a mixed bag of action in the mortgage market last week,” Joel Kan, the MBA's associate vice president of economic and industry forecasting, said in a press release. “Mortgage rates were slightly higher, refinance applications were essentially unchanged, and purchase applications fell for the second straight week.”
The Refinance Index edged up 0.1% from the previous week. A week-over-week 2.4% increase in conventional refinancing applications was offset by a drop in government-backed activity of 6.3%. The index overall was 17% lower than it was in the same week of 2020.
The Purchase Index dropped 3% on a seasonally adjusted basis and 2% unadjusted from the prior week. The unadjusted purchase volume came in 24% higher compared to a year ago.
Although total activity decreased, the average size of new mortgages came in higher across all application types, rising to $337,000 from $330,000 the prior week. Purchase mortgages climbed to $408,100 compared to $400,100, while refi loans increased to $291,500 from $284,300.
“This is a sign that the competitive purchase market, driven by low housing inventory and high demand, is pushing prices higher and weighing down on activity. The higher prices are also affecting the mix of activity, with stronger growth in purchase loans with larger-than-average balances,” Kan said.
Refinancing applications accounted for 61% of total mortgage volume, up from 60.6% the week before, while the share of adjustable-rate mortgages increased to 3.9% compared to 3.5% the previous week.
New Federal Housing Administration-insured mortgages fell to 10.1% of total share volume from 10.7% in the previous week. The Veterans Affairs-guaranteed share also decreased to 11.9% from 12.2%, while the share of U.S. Department of Agriculture/Rural Housing Service stayed at 0.4%.
The average contract interest rate of 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances of $548,250 or less rose to 3.18% from its level of 3.17% a week earlier, while the equivalent rate for jumbo loans jumped to 3.31% from 3.28%.
For FHA-backed loans, the average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages climbed one basis point to 3.13% week over week.
The average rate for 15-year fixed-rate mortgages fell to 2.54% from 2.55% compared to the prior week, but rates on the 5/1 ARM went up to 2.76% from 2.59%.
