Down for second straight week as rates on home loans hit 16-month highs, industry group reports.
November 2, 2005: 7:47 AM EST
NEW YORK (Reuters) – U.S. mortgage applications fell for a second consecutive week as interest rates on home loans climbed to 16-month highs, an industry trade group said Wednesday.
The Mortgage Bankers Association said its index of mortgage application volume for the week ended Oct. 28 declined 4.8 percent to 646.7, its lowest point since the start of April, when the index was at 644.5. The index is down from the previous week’s 679.1.
Borrowing costs on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages, excluding fees, averaged 6.21 percent last week, up 0.15 of a percentage point from the previous week’s 6.06 percent.
It was the highest rate on the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage, the industry benchmark, since June 2004, when the rate hit 6.34 percent.
By index subcomponent, the MBA’s purchase mortgage index, considered a timely gauge on U.S. home sales, fell 6.2 percent to 437.6 from the previous week’s 466.4. The refinancing applications index dropped 2.8 percent to 1,862.8 from 1,916.8 in the previous week.
All the indices were seasonally adjusted.