by Calculated Risk on 11/10/2010 07:26:00 AM

The MBA reports: Mortgage Applications Increase in Latest MBA Weekly Survey

The Refinance Index increased 6.0 percent from the previous week. The seasonally adjusted Purchase Index increased 5.5 percent from one week earlier. This is the third consecutive weekly increase in purchase applications.
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“The increases in purchase applications we have seen over the past couple of weeks align with the better than expected news from October’s employment report and other data indicating some improvement in the economy’s growth prospects. Refinance applications increased as rates continued to hover near record lows.” [said Michael Fratantoni, MBA’s Vice President of Research and Economics.]
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The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages remained unchanged at 4.28 percent, with points decreasing to 1.05 from 1.07 (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 has increased slightly for three straight weeks, however the index is still about 30% below the levels of April 2010. This suggests existing home sales will remain weak through the end of the year.