Housing

Mortgage Loan Rates Mostly Flat, Applications Increase

Paul Ausick

Published: November 15, 2017 8:40 am

Last Updated: January 12, 2020 6:18 am

The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) released its weekly report on mortgage applications Wednesday morning, noting an increase of 3.1% in the group’s seasonally adjusted composite index for the week ending November 10. During the week, mortgage loan rates rose on two of five loan types that the MBA tracks, while rates on the others were unchanged.

On an unadjusted basis, the composite index increased by 2% week over week. The seasonally adjusted purchase index increased by 0.4% compared with the week ended November 3. The unadjusted purchase index decreased by 3% for the week and is now 17% higher year over year.

The MBA’s refinance index increased by 6% week over week, and the percentage of all new applications that were seeking refinancing rose from 49% to 53.1%, its highest level since September.

Adjustable rate mortgage loans accounted for 6.4% of all applications, down 0.2 percentage points from the prior week.

Mortgage loan rates have spent the past week moving mostly sideways. Wednesday’s report on the consumer price index is expected to show core inflation at 1.7%, a level it’s maintained for six months. Unless it comes in above that, rates likely will continue to feel upward pressure.

According to the MBA, last week’s average mortgage loan rate for a conforming 30-year fixed-rate mortgage remained unchanged at 4.18%. The rate for a jumbo 30-year fixed-rate mortgage was also unchanged at 4.12%. The average interest rate for a 15-year fixed-rate mortgage increased from 3.51% to 3.54%, its highest level since March.

The contract interest rate for a 5/1 adjustable rate mortgage loan rose from 3.33% to 3.41, also a high since March. Rates on a 30-year FHA-backed fixed-rate loan remained unchanged at 4.05%.

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