Your Economy (No Politics)

[Bullwinkle]

Mortgage applications continue declining pattern
2005-12-14


WASHINGTON (AFX) -- The volume of mortgage applications dropped 5.7% in the week ended Dec. 9 compared to the previous week, data from the Mortgage Bankers Association show. Also on a seasonally adjusted basis, applications for mortgages to buy homes skidded 3.5%, while refinancings fell 9.7% on a week-to-week basis. Refinancings accounted for 40.2% of total applications, off from the previous week's 41.0%, while adjustable-rate mortgages nosed up 33.5% from 33.1%. Average contract interest rates for 30- and 15-year fixed-rate mortgages slipped last week to 6.28% and 5.83%, respectively, from 6.32% and 5.84% a week earlier, the MBA said. The rate on one-year ARMs averaged 5.50%, up from 5.49%. Overall, the four-week moving average tracking applications activity in the mortgage market was off 1.5%.


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