Mortgage activity increased during the
week ended November 9 as parts of the states most impacted by Hurricane Sandy in
late October were able to return to more normal activity. The Mortgage Bankers Association's Weekly
Mortgage Applications Survey, a measure of applications volume, increased 12.6
percent on a seasonally adjusted basis and 12 percent on an unadjusted basis
from the week ended November 2.
Applications for both refinancing and
home purchases increased. The
Refinancing Index was up 13 percent following five consecutive weeks of decline
and the share of applications for refinancing rose to 81 percent from 80
percent the previous week. The
seasonally adjusted Purchase Index increased 11 percent form one week earlier
while the unadjusted Purchase Index was 8 percent higher than the previous week
and 22 percent above that of the same week in 2011.
"Following the decrease in applications two weeks ago due
to the effects of superstorm Sandy, mortgage applications in many East Coast
states rebounded strongly this week," said Mike Fratantoni, MBA's Vice
President of Research and Economics. "Application volume in New Jersey
more than doubled over the week, while volume in Connecticut and New York
increased more than 60 percent. In addition to the rebound in the states
impacted by the storm, the 30 year fixed mortgage rate reached a new record low
in the survey."
Purchase Index vs 30 Yr Fixed
Refinance Index vs 30 Yr Fixed
Both average contract interest rates and effective rates for
mortgage loans with 80 percent loan to value ratios decreased across the board. Conforming 30-year fixed-rate mortgages (FRM)
with balances of $417,500 or less hit yet another record low rate with an average
contract rate of 3.52 percent with 0.41 point (including the origination fee)
compared to 3.61 percent with 0.45 point the previous week.
The rate for 30-year jumbo FRM with balances over $417,500
decreased to 3.83 percent from 3.88 percent with points rising to 0.41 from
0.36. FHA-backed 30-year FRM rates decreased
by 3 basis points to 3.34 percent and points rose from 0.75 to 0.78. Fifteen-year FRM rates fell to 2.88 percent
with 0.37 point from 2.95 percent with points 0.40
point.
Adjustable-rate mortgages (ARM) maintained a market share
of 4 percent. The contract rate for the 5/1
adjustable version was 2.60 percent with 0.30 point compared to 2.61 percent
with 0.41 point.
MBA's survey covers over 75 percent of all U.S. retail
residential mortgage applications, and has been conducted weekly since
1990. Respondents include mortgage bankers, commercial banks and
thrifts. Base period and value for all indexes is March 16, 1990=100.