Mortgage Refinancing Applications Jump

January 31, 2008 - Homeowners’ applications to refinance loans surged again in the Mortgage Bankers Association’s latest survey of filings, rising 22.1% last week from the previous one.

According to the survey, refinancings accounted for 73% of the total number of mortgage applications filed during the week ended Friday, up from 66% the previous week.

Applications for new mortgages to buy homes decreased by a seasonally adjusted 17.7% on a week-to-week basis.

Overall, applications for mortgage loans rose a seasonally adjusted 7.5% last week, compared with the previous week. And applications rose 70.7% from the year earlier.

The Mortgage Bankers Association’s four-week moving average for all loans was up a seasonally adjusted 16.7%.

The rush of refinancing activity comes as mortgage interest rates have fallen over the past several weeks. But according to the survey, rates actually increased last week.

The average rate on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages rose to 5.60% last week, up from 5.49% the previous week. Fifteen-year fixed-rate mortgages averaged 5.04%, up from 4.96%.

The rate on one-year adjustable-rate mortgages increased to 5.70%, up from 5.51%. ARMs again decreased as a proportion of overall filings, falling to 8.6% last week from the prior week’s 9.3%.

The MBA survey covers about half of all U.S. retail residential-mortgage applications.

Mortgage-Refinancing Applications Jump
By AMY HOAK | Wall Street Journal