US mortgage applications down as rates hit record-high

MBA’s refinance index posted a 1% week-over-week gain and was 56% lower than the same week one year ago. The purchase index declined 2% from the prior week and was down by 9% from last year.

“Purchase activity remained weak, but the average loan size increased again, which indicates that home-price growth remains strong, and a greater share of the activity is occurring at the higher end of the market,” Kan said. “We will continue to assess the potential impact on mortgage demand from the sharp drop in interest rates this week due to the invasion of Ukraine.”

Of total applications, the refi share of mortgage activity fell to 49.9% from 50.1% the previous week. The adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) share of activity increased to 5.3% of total applications. The FHA share of total applications was down one basis point to 8.6%, the VA share of total applications was up three basis points to 10.2%, and the USDA share of total applications remained unchanged at 0.4%.