Refi share climbs as government demand softens
The refinance share of activity increased to 45.5% of total applications, up from 44.3% the prior week.
Adjustable-rate mortgages accounted for 8.4% of applications, reflecting limited appetite for rate risk even as 5/1 ARM rates held around the mid 5% range.
Conventional purchase applications were flat week over week. “FHA and VA purchase applications declined,” Kan said, as the FHA share of total volume slipped to 18.2% and VA share to 15.7%, while USDA business held at 0.5%.
Rates ease from recent highs, but buyers stayed cautious
The latest MBA figures arrived after several weeks in which long-term US mortgage rates climbed to their highest levels in nearly seven months before easing slightly in early April, according to recent Freddie Mac data and other market surveys. Those moves echoed the volatility in Treasury yields as investors reacted to the Iran conflict and swings in oil prices.
In a separate release on new-home demand in March, the MBA’s Builder Application Survey showed applications for loans on newly built homes rose 11% year over year and 26% from February, hitting the highest index level since that survey began in 2012.
