The Mortgage
Bankers Association (MBA) reported on
Wednesday that the mortgage application volume in the U.S. soared by 33.3 per cent in the week that ended January 10, following a 3.7
per cent decline the week before. This marked the first weekly increase in mortgage
applications in five weeks, the pace of which was also the strongest since the
week ended March 6, 2020 (+55.4 per cent).
According to
the MBA’s data, last week’s surge in mortgage applications reflected a 43.5
per cent climb in mortgage refinance applications and a 26.9 per cent jump in mortgage applications to
purchase a home.
The report also
revealed that the average fixed 30-year mortgage rate increased from 6.99 per cent to 7.09 per
cent, the highest level since early
May 2024.
Commenting on
the latest survey results, Joel Kan, MBA’s vice president and deputy chief
economist, noted that bond yields in the U.S. and abroad continued to move
higher in response to concerns over a sticky inflation outlook and still
too-high budget deficits, which pushed mortgage rates higher for the fifth
consecutive week. “This time of the year is a particularly volatile time for
application volumes, so it can be more helpful to focus on the level rather
than the per cent change,” he
added.