Mortgage Application Activity Slows Down

Mortgage application activity decelerated for the week ending Jan. 24, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA); the data included an adjustment for the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday.

The Market Composite Index, the MBA’s measure of mortgage loan application volume, decreased 2% on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier. On an unadjusted basis, the index sank by 9%.

The seasonally adjusted Purchase Index dipped by 0.4% from one week earlier while the unadjusted index fell by 4% – the latter was also 7% lower than the same week one year ago.

The Refinance Index was down by 7% from the previous week and was 5% higher than the same week one year ago; the refinance share of mortgage activity decreased to 37.1% of total applications from 40.4% in the previous week.

Among the federal programs, the FHA share of total applications increased to 16.7% from 16.5% the week prior while the VA share of total applications decreased to 13.2% from 14.6% and the The USDA share of total applications increased to 0.5% from 0.4%.

Joel Kan, MBA’s vice president and deputy chief economist, observed, “Purchase activity decreased slightly, but applications for FHA purchase loans were a bright spot, increasing by 2%. New and existing-home sales ended 2024 on a strong note, and if mortgage rates continue to stabilize and for-sale inventory loosens, we expect a gradual pick up in purchase activity in the coming months.”