At a time of the year when mortgage application volume should be picking up, the Mortgage Bankers Association‘s Purchase Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume for home purchases across the country, fell 4 percent over the past week and is running 21 percent lower on a year-over-year basis.
At the same time, the inventory of homes for sale across the country is 9.5 percent higher, and moving 23 percent slower, year-over-year.
Activity in the mortgage market is at its lowest level since the year 2000. It’s not a lack of inventory nor the weather that’s to be blamed. And in terms of interest rates, current rates are roughly 30 percent lower than before the housing market last peaked.
Would this be attributable to refinancing (or lack thereof?)
[Editor’s Note: The “Purchase Index,” which is down 21 percent YOY, excludes refinancing activity. The Refinance Index dropped another 7 percent last week and is now at its lowest level since 2008.]