MBA: Refinancing Activity At 15-Year High

(RTTNews) - Refinancing activity in the US reached a new 15-year high last week, as homeowners were compelled to lock in attractive rates on their existing homes.

The Mortgage Bankers Association's Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, increased 4.9 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier.

The Refinance Index increased 5.7 percent from the previous week and is at its highest level since May 1, 2009.

"The volume of refi applications last week was up 26% over their level four weeks ago. Mortgage rates dropped to their lowest level in the survey, going back to 1990, as incoming data continue to indicate that economic growth has slowed," said Michael Fratantoni, MBA's Vice President of Research and Economics.
However, the seasonally adjusted Purchase Index increased 0.6 percent from one week earlier, indicating the potential homebuyers remain on the sidelines.
The unadjusted Purchase Index decreased 1.1 percent compared with the previous week and was 38.8 percent lower than the same week one year ago.
The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages decreased to 4.55 percent from 4.60 percent.