NEW YORK – Mortgage loan application volume surged 13% on a seasonally adjusted basis in the week ended Aug. 13, as refinancings soared 17.1% to their highest level since the week ended May 15, 2009, the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) said Wednesday.
On an unadjusted basis, the Market Composite Index increased 12.4% from the previous week.
The seasonally adjusted Purchase Index decreased 3.4% in the week, while the unadjusted Purchase Index declined 4.6% from the prior week and was plunged 38.6% from the same week a year ago.
The four-week moving average for the seasonally adjusted Market Index rose 2.6%, while the average for the seasonally adjusted Purchase Index gained 0.1%, and the four-week moving average for the Refinance Index increased 3.2%.
Refinancings accounted for 81.4% of total applications in the week, up from 78.1% the previous week, and is the highest refinance share observed since January 2009. The adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) share of activity decreased to 5.7% from 5.9% of total applications from the previous week.
The average contract interest rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage increased to 4.60% from 4.57%, while the average 15-year fixed-rate mortgage rose to 3.99% from 3.95%, and the average one-year ARMs decreased to 6.90% from 7.00%.
