by Calculated Risk on 11/03/2010 07:32:00 AM

The MBA reports: Mortgage Purchase Applications Increase, while Refinance Applications Decline in Latest MBA Weekly Survey

The Refinance Index decreased 6.4 percent from the previous week. This is the third straight week the Refinance Index has decreased. The seasonally adjusted Purchase Index increased 1.4 percent from one week earlier.
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The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages increased to 4.28 percent from 4.25 percent, with points increasing to 1.07 from 1.00 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent loan-to-value (LTV) ratio loans.

Click on graph for larger image in new window.

This graph shows the MBA Purchase Index and four week moving average since 1990.

The four-week moving average of the purchase index decreased 2.7% last week, and is about 30% below the levels of April 2010. This suggests existing home sales will remain weak through the end of the year.