Recent Updates
- US: Consumer Sentiment (Aug-prelim), Import/Export Prices (Jul)
- US: Consumer Sentiment Detail (Aug-prelim)
- US: Vehicle Miles Driven by State (Jun)
- Bulgaria: Agricultural PPI (Q2) Central Bank Survey (Jul)
- Blue Chip: Blue Chip Economic Indicators (Aug)
- more updates...
Economy in Brief
U.S. Housing Affordability Declines Further in June
The NAR Fixed Rate Mortgage Housing Affordability Index fell 3.6% in June...
EMU Output Makes Solid Gain in June
The European Monetary Union posted a 0.7% increase for industrial output in June...
U.S. Producer Prices Fall During July; Core Increase Weakens
The Producer Price Index for Final Demand fell 0.5% during July...
U.S. Unemployment Claims Continue on an Uptrend
Initial claims for unemployment insurance filed in the week ended August 6 rose 14,000 to 262,000...
RICS Survey Points to More U.K. Housing Sector Weakness
The survey of housing market conditions in the U.K. continues to show strength in prices versus weakness...
Viewpoints
Commentaries are the opinions of the author and do not reflect the views of Haver Analytics.
by Tom Moeller April 25, 2018
The Mortgage Bankers Association reported that its total Mortgage Applications Volume Index eased 0.2% last week (-1.9% y/y), following a 4.9% increase during the prior week.
Purchase loan applications were unchanged (+11.2% y/y), after a 6.1% rise during the prior week. Applications to refinance eased 0.3% (-16.1% y/y), following a 3.5% rise.
The effective interest rate on a 15-year mortgage notched up w/w to 4.26%, and remained up sharply from the 3.46% low in September. The effective rate on a 30-year fixed-rate loan gained w/w to 4.87%. The rate on a Jumbo 30-year loan rose to 4.76%. For adjustable 5-year mortgages, the effective interest rate increased w/w to 4.14%.
The average mortgage loan size rose to $296,100 (1.1% y/y). For purchases, the average loan size increased to $316,900 (1.2% y/y); for refinancings, it fell to $261,100 (-2.2% y/y).
Applications for adjustable-rate loans declined 27.4% y/y, while applications for fixed-rate loans improved 0.6% y/y.
The survey covers over 75% of all U.S. retail residential mortgage applications and has been conducted weekly since 1990. Respondents include mortgage bankers, commercial banks and thrifts. The base period and value for all indexes is March 16, 1990=100. The figures for weekly mortgage applications and interest rates are available in Haver's SURVEYW database.
MBA Mortgage Applications (%, SA) | 04/20/18 | 04/13/18 | 04/06/18 | Y/Y | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Total Market Index | -0.2 | 4.9 | -1.9 | -1.9 | -17.8 | 15.6 | 17.9 |
Purchase | 0.0 | 6.1 | -2.0 | 11.2 | 5.6 | 13.3 | 15.5 |
Refinancing | -0.3 | 3.5 | -1.7 | -16.1 | -34.0 | 17.3 | 19.7 |
15-Year Mortgage Effective Interest Rate (%) | 4.26 | 4.20 | 4.21 | 3.59 (Apr.'17) | 3.59 | 3.22 | 3.37 |