Thursday, May 21, 2009

home loan and mortgage refi rise on low interest rates

Mortgage Bankers Assoc says home loan activity on the rise with mortgage refinance leading the way on the back of low interest rates.
Lower interest rates appear to be luring more homeowners to the table to refinance.
The number of mortgage applications rose by a seasonally adjusted 2.3 percent for the week ended May 15, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.
The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, rose to 915.9 from 895.6 one week earlier.The Refinance Index increased 4.5 percent, to 4,794.4 from 4,588.6 the previous week.
The refinance share of mortgage activity increased to 73.6 percent of total applications from 71.9 percent the previous week.
The average interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages decreased to 4.69 percent from 4.76 percent, with points decreasing to 1.13 from 1.18.The average interest rate for 15-year fixed-rate mortgages decreased to 4.44 percent from 4.5 percent, with points decreasing to 1.01 from 1.08.The average interest rate for one-year adjustable rate mortgages decreased to 6.38 percent from 6.41 percent, with points decreasing to 0.1 from 0.11.