Mortgage Application Volume Falls on Higher Rates

Washington, DC, March 4, 2009--Mortgage application volume last week dropped a seasonally adjusted 12.6% compared with the week before, as interest rates charged on fixed-rate mortgages again nudged higher, the Mortgage Bankers Association said.
 
Overall, applications decreased an unadjusted 6.7% last week compared with the same week in 2008, according to the MBA's weekly survey.

Applications for mortgages to purchase homes fell a seasonally adjusted 5.6% week to week, while filings to refinance existing home loans dropped 15.3%.

The four-week moving average for all mortgages was also down, lower by 4.8%.
 
Refinancing applications accounted for 66.9% all filings last week, less than the 69.7% seen the week before.

Interest rates for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages averaged 5.14% last week, up from 5.07% the week before. The average on 15-year fixed-rate mortgages reached 4.73%, up from 4.71%.