The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) released its weekly report on mortgage applications Wednesday morning, noting a decrease of 7.2% in the group’s seasonally adjusted composite index, following a rise of 0.2% for the previous week. Mortgage loan rates rose on 30-year conforming mortgages and fell on other types.

The seasonally adjusted purchase index decreased 3% from the prior week’s report. On an unadjusted basis, the composite index decreased by 17% week-over-week. The unadjusted purchase index decreased by 14% for the week and remains 12% lower year-over-year.

Adjustable rate mortgage loans accounted for 7.5% of all applications, down slightly from 7.8% in the prior week.

The MBA’s refinance index decreased by 11%, after rising by 1% in the previous week. The share of refinancings decreased from 57% to 55% of all applications.

The average mortgage loan rate for a conforming 30-year fixed-rate mortgage increased from 4.25% to 4.27%. The rate for a jumbo 30-year fixed-rate mortgage dropped from 4.22% to 4.15%. The average interest rate for a 15-year fixed-rate mortgage decreased from 3.48% to 3.44%.

The contract interest rate for a 5/1 adjustable rate mortgage loan slipped from 3.19% to 3.12%. Rates on a 30-year FHA-backed fixed rate loan rose from 3.99% to 3.97%.

Both purchases and refinancings fell last week partly due to the Labor Day holiday. We note that the mortgage loan rate on jumbo loans has fallen below the rate on conforming loans. Typically this indicates that builders and lenders are trying to attract wealthier buyers.

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