According to The Mortgage Bankers Association’s Weekly Applications Survey, the average contract interest rate on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages fell to 4.37 percent last week from 4.45 percent the week before. The drop brought rates to their lowest level of the year and sparked a 21.7 percent increase in the Market Composite Index, which measures total mortgage loan application volume. The Refinance Index gained 30.4 percent and reached its highest level this year. Michael Fratantoni, MBA’s vice president of research and economics, said refinance application volume has increased 63 percent over the past month, though purchase applications have remained little changed through the summer. More here and here.
