Refinance Apps Jump as Interest Rates Decline
WASHINGTON, D.C. (January 9, 2008) — The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) today released its Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the New Year’s holiday shortened week ending January 4, 2008. The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, was 706.0, an increase of 32.2 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from 533.9 one week earlier, which was the week between the Christmas and New Year holidays. On an unadjusted basis, the Index increased 81.1 percent compared with the previous week and was up 8.7 percent compared with the same week one year earlier. The Refinance Index increased 53.9 percent to 2494.2 from 1620.9 the previous week and the seasonally adjusted Purchase Index increased 14.7 percent to 414.0 from 360.8 one week earlier. On an unadjusted basis, the Purchase Index increased 56.2 percent to 251.8 from 161.2 the previous week. The seasonally adjusted Conventional Index increased 34.1 percent to 1015.3 from 757.4 the previous week, and the seasonally adjusted Government Index increased 18.2 percent to 190.4 from 161.1 the previous week.