After four weeks of declines mortgage demand saw a slight uptick (+1.2%), according to the latest Mortgage Bankers Association weekly survey…(MBA)
- The Purchase Index was up 1% compared with the previous week but is still down 16% from the same week one year ago.
- The Refinance Index was up 2% from the previous week but is still down a whopping 8% from the same week one year ago.
NOTE: The refinance share of mortgage activity increased slightly to 30.8% of total applications meanwhile the he adjustable-rate mortgage share of activity continues to fall dropping to 8.4% of total applications.
Mortgage rates fell for the second week in a row with a substantial 31 basis points drop on the 30-year fixed to 5.43% for the week ending July 29th…
- The 15-year fixed fell 21 basis points to 4.74% and the 5/1 ARM fell 12 basis points to 4.55%.
Joel Kan, MBA Economist, said slightly lower rates with more inventory could lead to a rebound in real estate. “The drop in rates led to increases in both refinance and purchase applications, but compared to a year ago, activity is still depressed. Lower mortgage rates, combined with signs of more inventory coming to the market, could lead to a rebound in purchase activity.”