While mortgage loan application volumes in the U.S. dropped another 6.8 percent over the past week on a seasonally adjusted basis and 6 percent in the absolute, the decrease was driven by a 15 percent drop in refinancing activity, which was down 60 percent on a year-over-year basis, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association.
At the same time, purchase mortgage activity inched up 1 percent but was 10 percent lower than at the same time last year, representing more of a saunter than a “rush to lock in at lower rates,” with the benchmark 30-year mortgage rate nearing 5 percent for the first time since 2011 and the probability of the Federal Reserve raising interest rates by another two (2) full percentage points by the end of the year having jumped.