The Market Composite Index of mortgage loan applications, a measure of mortgage loan applications for purchases and refinancings, decreased by 22.1 percent to 788.6 on a seasonally adjusted basis for the week ending April 9 from 1,012.9 one week earlier, according to a report released today by the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA). On an unadjusted basis, the Index decreased by 21.5 percent for the week ending April 9 compared with the previous week and was down 29.1 percent compared with the same week one year earlier.
The seasonally adjusted Refinance Index decreased by 30.7 percent to 2,861.6 for the week ending April 9 from 4,126.7 one week earlier, according to the report. "The fall in refinance applications this week is not surprising given the approximate 40 basis point increase in mortgage interest rates since roughly the middle of March," said Jay Brinkmann, the MBA's vice president of research and economics.
The refinance share of mortgage activity decreased to 50.4 percent of total applications for the week ending April 9 from 57.1 percent the previous week. The adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) share of activity increased to 29.4 percent of total applications for the week ending April 9 compared to 28.8 percent the previous week, according to the report.