Tag Archives: Mortgage Applications

Historically low mortgage rates failed once more to entice interest from borrowers, with the Mortgage Bankers Association recording a seasonally adjusted 4.3-percent plunge in mortgage applications last week. The numbers arrive amid a flurry of action from the Federal Reserve. The trade group penciled in a 4.5-percent decline on a seasonally unadjusted basis, alongside downward revisions for the Purchase Index at a seasonally adjusted 0.8 percent and seasonally unadjusted 1.7 percent.

The weekly mortgage applications numbers are in, and current data shows an increase nationally. The Mortgage Bankers Association's Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ended September 23 demonstrated a 9.3 percent rise in mortgage loan application volume on a seasonally-adjusted basis, according to the Market Composite Index contained within the report. The Purchase Index rose 2.6 percent this week on a seasonally-adjusted basis and showed a 0.1 percent hike year-over-year.

Crooked cops, money-launderers, and criminal enterprises have made headlines in the mortgage business recently, with state and federal officials nabbing dozens for diverse fraud schemes.

Ahead of lower limits for conforming jumbo loans, nearly assured in October as Congress disagrees even over stopgap spending bills, the Federal Reserve offered a revealing look at the market Friday by releasing a report on the health of the housing market. The consensus: falling limits will likely only nudge the jumbo loan market, not tip it over, as some critics claim. The Fed found that the current criteria for a jumbo fences in only 1.3 percent of all loans backed by GSEs Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

More loan officers, underwriters, and attorneys are filing their loan documents and closing deals in a paperless environment, according to a recent survey. Xerox released a survey Wednesday that found some 61 percent of mortgage industry professionals are ditching their loan folders, logging in to online systems, and doing more business without paper. The seventh annual Path to Paperless survey revealed some 96 percent of respondents favor a workplace without paper.

Mortgage application volume crept up from last week, with refinancing activity leaping ahead of purchases, according to a weekly survey by the Mortgage Bankers Association. Stacks of applications around the nation thickened by less than 1 percent from the previous week, largely as a result of climbing mortgage rates. The Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey, a measure of total application volume by the trade group, pulled together several indices that reflect volume.

Mortgage application volume jumped from the previous week by 6.3 percent, reflecting the highly attractive plunge by interest rates to record lows, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. Even so, the good news comes amid a fall in home valuations and cash buyer interest, which Capital Economics says will likely depress sales activity across the housing market. Frank Nothaft, VP and chief economist for Freddie Mac, spoke to MReport about the forces behind anemic demand for home purchases at the Five Star Conference and Expo in Dallas.

With refinancing activity continuing a backslide, the number of homebuyers filing mortgage applications waxed over last week, falling by 4.9 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis, according to a weekly survey by the Mortgage Bankers Association. The trade group recorded new lows for 30-year and 15-year loan contract interest rates. According to the MBA's Market Composite Index, a yardstick for mortgage loan applications nationally, numbers declined by a seasonally unadjusted 5.3 percent.

Mortgage application volume suffered a drubbing Wednesday, even as the U.S. economy fell behind in important global rankings and the euro zone crisis continues to trouble investors. With numerous economists attributing lows for consumer confidence to a bevy of international concerns, MReport spoke with analysts to spot any troubling signs for housing as the global economy wobbles. The verdict: Market watchers should keep an eye on euro zone fallout for mortgage rates and credit supply.

Despite an unfulfilling jobs report that left housing industries with flat feet, independent mortgage banks found reason to celebrate with a windfall in profit on second-quarter loans. Mortgage banks on average scored $575 for each loan, reflecting increases from $346 per loan over the first quarter this year, according to a performance report released Thursday by the Mortgage Bankers Association. Companies saw their loan volume jump from $164 million on average over the first quarter to $174 million.