Mortgage activity increased last week. Refi's were way up. Wish I could find the full report showing year over year info. Reuters use to post it.
Wednesday March 6, 7:00 am Eastern Time
U.S. mortgage refinancing jumps in Mar. 1 week-MBA
NEW YORK, March 6 (Reuters) - More U.S. homeowners refinanced mortgages last week than any time since mid-January, despite a slight increase in mortgage rates, a trade group said Wednesday.
The Mortgage Bankers Association of America's seasonally adjusted barometer of refinancing activity for the week ending Mar. 1 rose to 2,351.7, a 22.4 percent increase over the previous week. That represents the highest level for refinancing activity since the week ending Jan. 18, when the index stood at 2,768.3.
Last week, rates on 30-year mortgages -- the most widely held mortgage product in the U.S. -- averaged 6.81 percent, a rise of 0.07 percentage points from the previous week. Borrowers looking to refinance often wait for a slight uptick in rates to signal that a bottom has been reached.
The number of applications for new mortgages also increased last week, with the MBA's barometer of purchase activity rising to 335.4, a 6.3 percent increase over the previous week. Higher refinancing and purchasing activity lifted the trade group's index of overall market activity for the week ending Mar. 1 to 631.2, a 14.5 percent increase.
Each week, the MBA surveys between 20 and 35 firms, including the top lenders in the U.S. housing industry, to derive its refinance, purchase and market indices. This weekly survey accounts for more than 40 percent of all applications processed each week by mortgage lenders. |
