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Mortgage Application Volume Bounces Back

ByTMN Editor Reading Time: 1 minute

Mortgage loan application volume bounced back from last week’s low, rising 0.3%, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) weekly survey. Purchase mortgage activity grew 8%, driving the increase.

Last week’s numbers hit their lowest point since Mid-July, largely due to a 3% drop in refinancing. Refi dropped another 3% this week, but purchase mortgage applications made up for it, reaching their highest level since April.

“Compared to the same week last September, which was right in the middle of a significant upswing in home purchases, applications were down 11%– the smallest year-over-year decline in 14 weeks,” said Joel Kan, associate vice president of economic and industry forecasting.

The average loan size for a purchase application also rose, to $396,800. “The very competitive purchase market continues to put upward pressure on sales prices,” Kan noted.

Here are some highlights from the survey:

  • Mortgage loan application volume: +0.3%
  • Purchase mortgage applications: +8%
  • Refi: 64.9% of market share (-1.9%)
  • FHA share: 9.9% (-1%)
  • VA share: 10.2% (-0.2%)
  • USDA share: 0.1% (-0.4%)???
  • Average loan size for a purchase application: $396,800