Mortgage Applications Increase in the Week Ending August 9th

According to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending Friday, August 9th, the Market Composite Index—a measure of mortgage loan application volume—increased 16.8% on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier. On an unadjusted basis, the Index increased 15.0% compared with the previous week.

The Refinance Index increased 35.0% from the previous week and was 118.0% higher than the same week one year ago.

The seasonally adjusted Purchase Index increased 3.0% compared to one week ago. The unadjusted Purchase Index increased 2.0% compared with the previous week but was 8.0% lower than the same week one year ago.

Commenting on the results of this week’s survey, MBA Vice President and Deputy Chief Economist Joel Kan said:

“Rates on both 30- and 15-year fixed rate mortgages decreased for the second consecutive week, and combined with the previous week’s rate moves, spurred another strong week for application activity as borrowers with higher rates took the opportunity to refinance. Overall applications increased almost 17% to the highest level since January 2023, driven by a 35% increase in refinance applications. The refinance index also saw its strongest week since May 2022 and was 117% higher than a year ago, driven by gains in conventional, FHA, and VA applications. Additionally, purchase applications increased by 3%, with small gains seen across the various loan types, indicating that prospective homebuyers are slowly reentering the market.”