Mortgage Applications Dropped Despite a Rate Decline

The latest data from the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) showed mortgage activity declined last week despite better mortgage interest rates. What do you think was the reason for the decline?

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Mortgage Applications Dropped Despite a Rate Decline

The Mortgage Bankers Association reported on mortgage activity today for the week ending June 24, 2011. The news was surprising, as activity declined despite improved interest rates. The MBA’s Market Composite Index, which reflects mortgage application activity, fell by 2.7% in the period. However, the movement was hard to justify, given that contracted rates on 30-year and 15-year mortgages averaged 4.46% (down from 4.57%) and 3.64% (from 3.7%).

Refinancing activity was also down despite the improvement in rates, with the MBA’s Refinance Index dropping 2.6%. Yet, the refinance share of overall activity still managed to gain ground to 69.5% from 69.2% of total mortgage activity. This was due to the pitiful fact that Purchase Activity declined as well. The MBA’s Purchase Index fell 3.0% against the week before.

The four-week moving averages for the Market Composite Index and the Purchase Index are both a bit disconcerting. The four-week average of the Market Composite Index was up only 0.7% against the prior week, while the Purchase Index average was down 1.5%. Refinancing activity, however, was up 1.5% over the latest four-week span.

It’s hard to say what the cause of the decline was last week. Weather can impact week-to-week comparisons, and another wave of tornadoes did blow through the Midwest and East last week. We just heard Bloomberg Radio Host Pimm Fox relay the comments of a housing executive; he apparently noted that home shopping drops off sharply if a weekend is rainy generally versus dry. The start to summer also brings with it slower business activity generally, as well as a less active housing market (versus spring). It’s also possible that global uncertainty froze Americans last week, given all the trouble with Greece. Domestically, the possibility of the government finding empty coffers on August 2nd, without a debt ceiling hike, could mean no unemployment insurance payout or other benefit distribution, but we doubt the unemployed are house shopping now generally. Perhaps public sector employees are shaking in their work-boots.

What do you think was the cause of the slippage in mortgage activity last week?



Editor's Note: Article should interest investors in Bank of America (NYSE: BAC), Freddie Mac (OTC: FMCC.OB), Fannie Mae (OTC: FNMA.OB), Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS), Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS), Wells Fargo (NYSE: WFC), Toronto Dominion (NYSE: TD), BB&T (NYSE: BBT), CIT (NYSE: CIT), Bank United (NYSE: BKU), First Citizens (OTC: FCNCA.PK), Synovus (NYSE: SNV), United Bankshares (Nasdaq: UBSI), Hampton Roads Bankshares (Nasdaq: HMPR), WesBanco (Nasdaq: WSBC), City Holding (Nasdaq: CHCO), Sandy Spring (Nasdaq: SASR), First Citizens (OTC: FCBN.OB), SCBT Financial (Nasdaq: SCBT), Wilmington Trust (NYSE: WL), WSFS Financial (Nasdaq: WSFS), Southside Bancshares (Nasdaq: SBSI), Stellar One (Nasdaq: STEL), Union First Market (Nasdaq: UBSH), Eagle Bancorp (Nasdaq: EGBN), First Bancorp (Nasdaq: FBNC), Ameris (Nasdaq: ABCB), The Bancorp (Nasdaq: TBBK), First Community (Nasdaq: FCBC), Capital City (Nasdaq: CCBG), Financial Institutions (Nasdaq: FISI), National Bankshares (Nasdaq: NKSH), Citizens & Northern (Nasdaq: CZNC), Charter Financial (Nasdaq: CHFN), Seacoast Banking (Nasdaq: SBCF), TIB Financial (Nasdaq: TIBB), American National (Nasdaq: AMNB), United Community (Nasdaq: UCBI), Middleburg Financial (Nasdaq: MBRG), Heritage Financial (Nasdaq: HBOS), Zions Bancorp (Nasdaq: ZION), East West Bancorp (Nasdaq: EWBC), City National (NYSE: CYN), Bank of Hawaii (NYSE: BOH), SVB Financial (Nasdaq: SIVB), Westamerica (Nasdaq: WABC), Cathay General (Nasdaq: CATY), Umpqua (Nasdaq: UMPQ), Glacier Bancorp (Nasdaq: GBCI), Pacific Capital (Nasdaq: PCBC), PacWest (Nasdaq: PACW), Western Alliance (NYSE: WAL), First National Alaska (OTC: FBAK.OB), First Interstate Bancsystem (Nasdaq: FIBK), Nara (Nasdaq: NARA), West Coast (Nasdaq: WCBO), TriCo (Nasdaq: TCBK), Territorial (Nasdaq: TBNK), Washington Banking (Nasdaq: WCBO), Bank of Marin (Nasdaq: BMRC), Hanmi (Nasdaq: HAFC), PNC Bank (NYSE: PNC), J.P. Morgan Chase (NYSE: JPM), United Bankshares (Nasdaq: UBSI), Bank of New York Mellon (NYSE: BK), MB Financial (Nasdaq: MBFI), Astoria Financial (NYSE: AF), New York Community (NYSE: NYB), Hudson City (Nasdaq: HCBK), People’s United (Nasdaq: PBCT), First Niagra (Nasdaq: FNFG), Capitol Federal (Nasdaq: CFFN), Washington Federal (Nasdaq: WFSL), Investor’s Bancorp (Nasdaq: ISBC), Northwest Bankshares (Nasdaq: NWBI), Sterling Financial (Nasdaq: STSA), Ocwen (NYSE: OCN), Flagstar (NYSE: FBC), Provident (NYSE: PFS), Colombia Banking (Nasdaq: COLB), Kearny (Nasdaq: KRNY), Brookline (Nasdaq: BRKL), Dime Community (Nasdaq: DCOM), Flushing Financial (Nasdaq: FFIC), Danvers (Nasdaq: DNBK).

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