TALKING POINTS

  • Total mortgage application volume fell 1.1 percent last week from the previous week, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.
  • Refinances were behind the fall entirely. Volume fell 5 percent for the week and was nearly 19 percent lower than a year ago. 
  • The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances ($453,100 or less) decreased to 4.68 percent from 4.69 percent, with points increasing to 0.46 from 0.45 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent loan-to-value ratio loans.