High rates and another Fed hike didn’t massively deter would-be buyers last week, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. The MBA’s weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending November 4, 2022 found that the seasonally adjusted Purchase Index increased 1 percent from one week earlier. The unadjusted Purchase Index decreased 1 percent compared with the previous week and was41 percent lower than the same week one year ago.
The Refinance Indexdecreased 4 percent from the previous week and was 87 percent lower than the same week one year ago. The refinance share of mortgage activity decreased to 28.1 percent of total applications from 28.6 percent the previous week. The adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) share of activity increased to 12 percent of total applications.
“Mortgage rates edged higher last week following news that the Federal Reserve will continue raising short-term rates to combat high inflation. The 30-year fixed rate remained above 7 percent for the third consecutive week, and there were increases for most other loan types,” said Joel Kan, MBA’s Vice President and Deputy Chief Economist. “Purchase applications increased for the first time after six weeks of declines but remained close to 2015 lows, as homebuyers remained sidelined by higher rates and ongoing economic uncertainty. Refinances continued to fall, with the index hitting its lowest level since August 2000.”