Mortgage application volume surges in second week of 2013

Mortgage application volume jumps in January

According to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending January 11, 2013, mortgage application volume increased 15.2 percent from one week earlier, led by a strong increase in new mortgage applications.

The Market Composite Index increased 15.2 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from the week prior, and on an unadjusted basis, the Index increased 45 percent during the same period as the Refinance Index increased 15 percent from the previous week.

The seasonally adjusted Purchase Index increased 13 percent from one week earlier to the highest level since April 2011. The unadjusted Purchase Index increased 47 percent compared with the previous week and was 5 percent higher than the same week one year ago.

The refinance share of mortgage activity remained unchanged at 82 percent of total applications from the previous week. The adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) share of activity increased to 3 percent of total applications.

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Current mortgage interest rates

According to the MBA:

• The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances ($417,500 or less) remained unchanged at 3.61 percent, with points decreasing to 0.38 from 0.41 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent loan-to-value ratio (LTV) loans. The effective rate decreased from last week.
• The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with jumbo loan balances (greater than $417,500) increased to 3.88 percent from 3.78 percent, with points unchanged at 0.38 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent LTV loans. The effective rate increased from last week.
• The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages backed by the FHA increased to 3.39 percent from 3.35 percent, with points decreasing to 0.58 from 0.69 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent LTV loans. The effective rate increased from last week.
• The average contract interest rate for 15-year fixed-rate mortgages remained unchanged at 2.88 percent, with points decreasing to 0.27 from 0.39 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent LTV loans. The effective rate decreased from last week.
• The average contract interest rate for 5/1 ARMs increased to 2.66 percent from 2.64 percent, with points decreasing to 0.34 from 0.37 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent LTV loans. The effective rate increased from last week.