WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Mortgage applications in the U.S. declined 1.1 percent for the first time in 2018.
According to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association, market composite index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, for the week ending March 16, 2018 decreased 1.1 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from a week earlier.
On an unadjusted basis, the index decreased 1 percent compared with the previous week.
The Refinance Index decreased 5 percent from a week ago, as the refinance share of mortgage activity decreased to its lowest level since September 2008 38.5 percent of total applications from 40.1 percent last week. The adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) share of activity decreased to 7.0 percent of total applications.
The seasonally adjusted Purchase Index increased 1 percent from one week earlier, while unadjusted Purchase Index increased 2 percent compared with the previous week and was 6 percent higher than the same week one year ago.
The Federal Housing Administration's share decreased to 10.3 percent from 10.4 percent last week; the Veteran Affairs' share of total applications increased to 10.7 percent from 10.3 percent last week; and the United States Department of Agriculture's share of total applications decreased to 0.8 percent from 0.9 percent last week.
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