The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) reported on Wednesday that the mortgage application volume in the U.S. dropped 1.6 per cent in the week ended March 15, following a 7.1 per cent climb the week before. This marked the first fall in total mortgage application volume in three weeks.
According to the MBA’s data, last week’s decrease in mortgage applications reflected a 2.5 per cent decline in mortgage refinance applications and a 1.2 per cent slip in mortgage applications to purchase a home.
The report also revealed that the average fixed 30-year mortgage rate increased from 6.84 per cent to 6.97 per cent, recording its first rise in four weeks.
Commenting on the latest survey results, Joel Kan, MBA’s vice president and deputy chief economist said that mortgage rates increased last week as incoming data showed inflation was still hotter than expected, which stoked concerns about the timing and extent to which the Federal Reserve might be able to reduce the fed funds rates this year. “Mortgage applications continued to show sensitivity to rate movements, and both purchase and refinance activity decreased over the week,” he added.