Housing

Mortgage Loan Rates at 6-Month Highs

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The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) released its report on mortgage applications Wednesday morning. It noted a week-over-week increase of 8.4% in the group’s seasonally adjusted composite index for the week ending June 5, following a decrease of 7.6% for the week ending May 29. Mortgage loan rates increased on all five loan types.

On an unadjusted basis, the composite index increased by 19% week over week. The seasonally adjusted purchase index rose 10% compared to the week ended May 29. The unadjusted purchase index increased 20% for the week and is now 15% higher year over year.

The MBA’s refinance index increased 7% week over week, and the percentage of all new applications that were seeking refinancing remained unchanged at 49%, the lowest level in 12 months.

Mortgage News Daily called the rise in mortgage loan rates “frustrating” because there is no event or data point that appears to be responsible for the higher rates. The report goes on:

Even so, the phenomenon has been a fairly constant companion in the past 2 months as investors consider the possibility that global interest rates bottomed out in April. With a big-picture consideration like that, trading in bond markets has become less about reacting to “normal stuff.” Instead, investors are merely trying to make their way toward higher rates as quickly as possible just in case this move is “the big one.”

Adjustable rate mortgage loans accounted for 6.3% of all applications, up from 6.1% the prior week.

The average mortgage loan rate for a conforming 30-year fixed-rate mortgage increased from 4.02% to 4.17%, its highest level since last November. The rate for a jumbo 30-year fixed-rate mortgage increased from 4.01% to 4.15%, the highest rate since last October. The average interest rate for a 15-year fixed-rate mortgage rose from 3.27% to 3.37%.

The contract interest rate for a 5/1 adjustable rate mortgage loan increased from 2.97% to 3.06%. Rates on a 30-year FHA-backed fixed rate loan rose from 3.77% to 3.9%.

ALSO READ: 10 Hidden Things That Can Kill Your Home’s Sales Price

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