Mortgage Application Volume Falls

Washington, DC, Nov. 18, 2009--Mortgage application volume last week fell a seasonally adjusted 2.5% compared with the week before as lower interest rates failed to attract applicants, the Mortgage Bankers Association said.

Applications to refinance existing home loans dropped 1.4% for the week ended Nov. 13, compared with the previous week.

Applications filed for mortgages to buy homes also fell, down a seasonally adjusted 4.7% on a week-to-week basis, extending the weekly string of lower filings as tracked by the MBA to six.

Refinancings accounted for 72.9% of all applications last week -- the highest since the week ended May 15 -- up from 71.5% the week before.

Mortgage rates fell in the latest survey, with 30-year fixed-rate mortgages averaging 4.83% last week, down from 4.9% in the Nov. 6 week.

The average rate on 15-year fixed-rate mortgages stood at 4.32%, off from 4.33%, and one-year ARMs averaged 6.82%, down from 6.85%.