Mortgage Applications Down 4.6pc week ending May 23 2008

CHICAGO - May 28 2008 - Mortgage applications fell a seasonally adjusted 4.6% last week due to a drop in refinancing activity, the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) said Wednesday.

Refinance applications decreased 8.9% during the week ended May 23, compared with the week before. Applications for mortgages to purchase homes rose a seasonally adjusted 0.1% on a week-to-week basis.

Overall, applications were down 7.5% compared with the same week in 2007.

The four-week moving average for all loans was up 1%, the Washington-based Mortgage Bankers Association said.

Refinance applications made up 46.1% of all applications last week, down from 48.2% the previous week. Applications for an adjustable-rate mortgages also slipped, accounting for 9.3% of filings as opposed to 10.0% in the May 16 week.

The interest rate charged on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages averaged 5.96% last week, up from 5.90% the previous week, according to the MBA’s survey.

Similarly, the rate on 15-year fixed-rate mortgages averaged 5.49%, up from 5.42%, while the average rate on one-year ARMs jumped to 6.92% from 6.71%.

The Mortgage Bankers Association survey covers about half of all U.S. retail residential mortgage applications.

Mortgage applications down 4.6% last week: MBA
by Amy Hoak | MarketWatch