Mortgage applications see slight improvement ahead of Fed meeting

Overall mortgage applications grew 3.2% week over week, driven by gains in purchase and refinance activity.

According to the Mortgage Bankers Association, the market composite index increased 3.2% on a seasonally adjusted basis for the week ending December 9. The refinance index jumped 3% from the previous week, and the purchase index was up by 4% week over week.

“Mortgage rates increased slightly after a month of declines, as financial markets reacted to mixed signals regarding inflation and the Federal Reserve’s next policy moves. The 30-year fixed rate inched to 6.42%, which is still close to the lowest rate in a month,” said Joel Kan, VP and deputy chief economist of MBA. “However, with rates more than three percentage points higher than a year ago, both purchase and refinance applications are still well behind last year’s pace.”