Mortgage Applications Up For 6th Straight Week

Mortgage applications for new home purchases continued their rebound last week, another sign the housing market is moving forward after economic shutdowns caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

For the week ending May 22, The Mortgage Bankers Association’s Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey found that the purchase index increased 9 percent over the week before – the sixth straight weekly increase. Overall, mortgage applications increased 2.7 percent for the week.

“The housing market is continuing its path to recovery as various states reopen, leading to more buyers resuming their home search,” said Joel Kan, MBA’s Associate Vice President of Economic and Industry Forecasting.

The Refinance Index decreased 0.2 percent from the previous week and was 176 percent higher than the same week one year ago. 

The refinance share of mortgage activity decreased to 62.6 percent of total applications from 64.3 percent the previous week. The adjustable-rate mortgage share of activity increased to 3.4 percent of total applications.