Mortgage Applications Slow Their Pace, But Rates Should Help Soon

Mortgage Applications Slow Their Pace, But Rates Should Help Soon

Mortgage activity slowed significantly last week, pulling the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA’s) Market Composite lower after three weeks of gains. The Index, a measure of loan application volume, decreased 9.0 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis during the week ended January 27. It did, however, increase 6 percent on a non-seasonally adjusted basis.    The Refinance Index dropped 7 percent from the previous week and was 80 percent lower than the same week one year ago. The refinance share of applications dipped to 31.2 percent from 31.9 percent the previous week. [refiappschart] The same pattern prevailed for home purchase loans. The seasonally adjusted Purchase Index decreased 10 percent but was up 7 percent before adjustment. The Index is 41 percent lower than it wa