Mortgage Loan Rates at Four-Month Lows

The seasonally adjusted purchase index increased by 1% from last week’s report. On an unadjusted basis, the composite index decreased by 1% week-over-week. The unadjusted purchase index increased by 1% for the week and is down 2% year-over-year. This marks the fourth week in a row that the year-over-year unadjusted purchase index is lower than it was a year ago.

The MBA’s refinance index decreased by 1%, after increasing by 3% in the previous week. The share of refinancings dropped by a point to 65% of all applications. Adjustable rate mortgage loans account for 7% of all applications, up from 6% in the prior week.

The average mortgage loan rate for a conforming 30-year fixed-rate mortgage decreased from 4.46% to 4.39%. The rate for a jumbo 30-year fixed-rate mortgage fell from 4.51% to 4.43%. The average interest rate for a 15-year fixed-rate mortgage fell from 3.53% to 3.51%. All three loan types have fallen to their lowest levels since June.

The contract interest rate for a 5/1 adjustable rate mortgage loan remained unchanged at 3.25%.

Now that the government shutdown is over and loan applications are moving again, we should see a rise in the unadjusted purchase index. That depends, of course, on how Americans feel about the state of the economy and the confidence in its future direction.