Refinances also saw their share of overall activity recover
The volume of mortgage applications increased during the week ending June 1 as key interest rates decreased over the same period, according to the Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey released by the Mortgage Bankers Association.
The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, rose 4.1% on a seasonally adjusted basis but declined 7% on an unadjusted basis. The week's results included an adjustment for the Memorial Day holiday.
The Refinance Index climbed 4% from the previous period. The Purchase Index rose increased 4% on a seasonally adjusted basis and dropped 8% on an unadjusted basis. The unadjusted Purchase Index was 9% higher than the same week one year ago.
Refinances saw their share of overall activity increase to 35.6% from 35.3%. The adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) share of activity increased to 7.1%.
FHA applications accounted for 9.7% of the total, down from 9.9%. The VA share of total applications increased to 10.1% from 9.9%. Applications for USDA mortgages took up 0.8% of the total, remaining unchanged.
Average contract interest rates for the various mortgage types all declined during the period.
The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage with conforming loan balances posted an average of 4.75%, down from 4.84%, with points decreasing to 0.46 from 0.47 for 80% loan-to-value ratio loans. Rates for the 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with jumbo loan balances decreased to 4.7% from 4.73%, with points decreasing to 0.35 from 0.36.
Rates for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages backed by the FHA decreased to 4.77% from 4.85%, with points decreasing to 0.70 from 0.88. The average for 15-year fixed-rate mortgages decreased to 4.21% from 4.24%, with points decreasing to 0.50 from 0.51. Meanwhile, 5/1 ARMs saw their average rate drop to 4.08% from 4.11%, with points decreasing to 0.41 from 0.62.
