Mortgage applications for home purchases were 8% higher last week than the week before but were 18% lower than the same week last year, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. It notes that mortgage rates were lower during the same week last year.
Conventional and FHA purchase applications were responsible for the majority of the increase, said MBA economist Joel Kan, adding that “some buyers moved to act early this season.”
Meanwhile, home loan refinancing applications dropped 7% last week and were down 8% than the prior year, likely due to higher rates compared with the past two years.
Mortgage rates saw a slight increase last week, with the average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances ($726,200 or less) increasing to 6.78% from 6.75%. Points increased from 0.62 to 0.63 (including the origination fee) for 80% loan-to-value ratio loans. Mortgage rates also rose at the start of this week, with the average rate on the 30-year fixed mortgage reaching 6.92%.
