MBA Says Rate Spike is Closing Door on Refinancing

MBA Says Rate Spike is Closing Door on Refinancing

There was a small uptick in purchase mortgage activity during the first week of 2022. Refinancing held its own despite significant increases in interest rates. The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) said its Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, increased 1.4 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier. On an unadjusted basis, the Index was up 46 percent compared with the previous week. The data from the previous period had included an adjustment to account for Christmas Week. The Refinance Index dipped 0.1 percent from the previous week and was 50 percent lower than the same week one year ago. The refinance share of mortgage activity decreased to 64.1 percent of total applications from 65.4 percent a week earlier. [refiap