Mortgage applications drop 5.9% as interest rates rise

by KERRI PANCHUK

After experiencing a 13% surge in mortgage applications, the mortgage market lost steam last week with applications dropping 5.9% for the week ending June 17.

While homeowners rushed to refinance earlier in the month, that trend reversed itself, with the refinance index and purchase index falling 7.2% and 2.8%, respectively, the Mortgage Bankers Association said Wednesday.

In addition, the four-week moving averages for the market index and the refinance index are up 0.4% and 0.8%, respectively, while the seasonally adjusted purchase index is down 0.7%.

Refinancing activity cooled as the refinance share of mortgage activity fell to 69.2% of total applications from 70% the previous week. In addition, the adjustable-rate mortgage share of activity fell to 5.9% from 6.1% the prior week.

Meanwhile, the average interest rate on the 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage grew to 4.57%, up from 4.51% a week earlier. The 15-year fixed-rate mortgage also rose to 3.70%, up from 3.67% a week earlier.

URL to original article: http://www.housingwire.com/2011/06/22/mortgage-application-filings-drop-5-9-as-interest-rates-rise

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