Mortgage Activity Falls; Refinancing Rises
From Reuters
U.S. mortgage rates fell to four-month lows last week, but were not enough to entice a fresh wave of borrowers to apply for home loans, according to data from an industry group.
The Mortgage Bankers Assn. said its seasonally adjusted market index, a measure of mortgage activity, dipped for the week ended Friday by 0.7% to 616.1.
The Washington trade group’s seasonally adjusted refinancing index, however, rose after falling for four consecutive weeks. For the week ended Friday, it rose by 2.5% to 1,640.5.
The Washington trade group’s purchase index, a gauge of new loan requests for home purchases, fell last week for the first time in three weeks by 2.7% to 440.0.
