Applicaions Rise Amid Mortgage Meltdown

Mortgage application volume rose 22.5 percent during the week ending Nov. 30, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s weekly application survey.

The MBA’s application index climbed to a seasonally adjusted 791.8 points from 646.3 last week. That figure was revised down from a previously reported 652.5 because of an error by one of the larger reporting agencies, the MBA said. Refinance volume jumped 31.9 percent and purchase volume increased 15.2 percent.

The index peaked at 1,856.7 during the week ending May 30, 2003, at the height of the housing boom.

The survey provides a snapshot of mortgage lending activity among mortgage bankers, commercial banks and thrifts. It covers about 50 percent of all residential retail mortgage originations each week.

The average interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages decreased to 5.82 percent from 6.09 percent a week earlier. The average interest rate for one-year adjustable-rate mortgages increased to 6.28 percent from 6.24 percent the previous week. Full Story