Mortgage applications took a major fall for the week ending Dec. 27, dropping 21.9%, even with adjustments for the Christmas holiday, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA).
The Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey from the MBA showed the seasonally adjusted decline of nearly 22%. On an unadjusted basis, the MBA’s Market Composite Index, which measures mortgage loan application volume, was down 55% for the week of Dec. 27, when compared to the week before.
Refinance activity decreased 36% from two weeks ago and was 10% higher than for the same week last year. The unadjusted Refinance Index fell 62% from two weeks ago and was 6% lower than the same week a year ago. The seasonally adjusted Index was down 13% compared with two weeks ago.
“Mortgage rates moved higher through the last full week of 2024, reaching almost 7% for 30-year fixed-rate loans,” said Mike Fratantoni, MBA’s senior vice president and chief economist. “Not surprisingly, this increase in rates, at a time when housing activity typically grinds to a halt, resulted in declines in both refinance and purchase applications.”
Refinancing decreased to 39.4% of total applications, down from 44.3% the week before. Federal Housing Administration loans accounted for 16.6% of applications, down from 17.2% in the prior week. Veterans Administration loan applications made up 15.7% of the loan share, a slight increase from the previous week.
The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances ($766,550 or less) increased to 6.97% from 6.89% the week before.
