Mortgage Loan Rates Slipped Last Week, Remain Volatile

Housing

Published: June 24, 2015 7:30 am

Last Updated: April 28, 2020 2:08 am

The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) released its report on mortgage applications Wednesday morning. It noted a week-over-week increase of 1.6% in the group’s seasonally adjusted composite index for the week ending June 19, following a decrease of 5.5% for the week ending June 12. For the second consecutive week, mortgage loan rates decreased on all five loan types.

On an unadjusted basis, the composite index increased by 1% week over week. The seasonally adjusted purchase index rose by 1% compared to the week ended June 12. The unadjusted purchase index was unchanged for the week and remains 18% higher year over year.

The MBA’s refinance index increased by 2% week over week, and the percentage of all new applications that were seeking refinancing rose slightly from 48.5% to 49.0%.

Mortgage Daily News noted Tuesday that volatility in closing costs and mortgage rates have been “incessant” this year:

Even during past periods where rates have risen more overall, we generally saw a more concerted movement in one direction as opposed to the big moves higher and lower that have characterized the past few months. Volatility costs lenders too. It’s created an environment where underlying market improvements have resulted in smaller corresponding improvements in rate sheets compared to historical averages. At the same time, when underlying markets deteriorate, lenders are quicker and more aggressive when it comes to adjusting rate sheets accordingly.

Adjustable rate mortgage loans accounted for 6.5% of all applications, up from 6.3% the prior week.

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The average mortgage loan rate for a conforming 30-year fixed-rate mortgage decreased from 4.22% to 4.19%. The rate for a jumbo 30-year fixed-rate mortgage decreased from 4.18% to 4.14%. The average interest rate for a 15-year fixed-rate mortgage slipped from 3.43% to 3.38%.

The contract interest rate for a 5/1 adjustable rate mortgage loan decreased from 3.15% to 3.04%. Rates on a 30-year FHA-backed fixed-rate loan dropped from 4.00% to 3.96%.

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