The Market Composite Index of mortgage loan applications, a measure of mortgage loan applications for purchases and refinancings, increased by 12.6 percent to 677.2 on a seasonally adjusted basis for the week ending Dec. 12 compared to 601.6 one week earlier, according to a report released today by the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA). On an unadjusted basis, the Index increased by 11.3 percent for the week ending Dec. 12 compared with the previous week and was down 35.2 percent compared with the same week one year earlier.
The refinance share of mortgage activity increased to 51.8 percent of total applications for the week ending Dec. 12 compared to 49.4 percent the previous week. The adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) share of activity decreased to 28.0 percent for the week ending Dec. 12 from 29.3 percent the previous week, according to the report.