Refi Apps Still Near Best Levels Since October, Despite Larger Decline This Week

Per the latest release from the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA), both refinance and purchase indices decreased this week. In terms of the change from the previous week, it was the biggest drop so far this year, but not remotely as big as last week of 2024. Here is the refi index in terms of week-over-week change: And here is the exact same data, but expressed in terms of the outright index: If we're just focusing on 2025, the chart above doesn't look too bad for refi demand. But in case anyone needed to be reminded, the farther back one looks into the past, the more sobering the current levels become--even those seen at last year's peak. Purchase activity struggled as well, down 6% weekly, just barely beating the drop seen in the first week of the year in terms of week-over-week change. In outright terms, this brings purchase activity back near the middle of its recent range. The following bullet points offer a few highlights of changes in the % share of total activity for various categories: ● FHA Share increased from 16 to 16.6 ● VA Share decreased from 14.6 to 14.2 ● Refi Share decreased from 40.2 to 38.7

February 21, 2025 Download our Mobile App: Download our Mobile App: Housing News Refi Apps Still Near Best Levels Since October, Despite Larger Decline This Week Per the latest release from the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA), both refinance and purchase indices decreased this week. In terms of the change from the previous week, it was the biggest drop so far this year, but not remotely as big as last week... (read more) Housing News Building Permits Staying Fairly Calm as Housing Starts Whipsaw The Census Bureau released its New Residential Construction report this week, frequently referred to by its principal component "housing starts" (a term for the start of the first phase of new home construction). In addition to housing starts, the da... (read more) Mortgage Rate Watch Mortgage Rates End Week at Lowest Levels Since December 18th Back on December 18th, rates began the day fairly close to where they ended the previous day. In the afternoon, rates surged sharply higher following the Fed announcement. Even since then, the average 30yr fixed rate has operated almost exclusively a... (read more) MBS Commentary Near Best Levels in Months After AM Econ Data MBS are very close to their February 5th levels, which were the best since the morning of December 18th before the Fed announcement (and dot plot) caused a big sell-off. Today, it's econ data that's contributing to the third day in a row of mod... (read more) Rob Chrisman Verification, LO Database, Construction Appraisal Tools; Fiscal vs. Monetary Policy While much of the nation deals with the severe cold, I received this note from a new loan officer in Oklahoma. “Rob, I overheard my secondary group talking about a ‘PITA’ price adjustment. I didn’t want to show my ignorance. What is it?” You should a... (read more) Mortgage Rates 30 Yr. Fixed Rate 6.89% -0.07% Rate Change Points Mortgage News Daily 30 Yr. Fixed 6.89% -0.07 0.00 15 Yr. Fixed 6.37% -0.04 0.00 30 Yr. FHA 6.25% -0.07 0.00 30 Yr. Jumbo 7.22% -0.08 0.00 7/6 SOFR ARM 6.88% -0.01 0.00 30 Yr. VA 6.28% -0.07 0.00 Updates Daily - Last Update: 2/21 15 Yr. Fixed Rate 6.37% -0.04% Rate Change Points Freddie Mac 30 Yr. Fixed 6.85% -0.02 0.00 15 Yr. Fixed 6.04% -0.05 0.00 Updates Weekly - Last Update: 2/20 Rate Change Points Mortgage Bankers Assoc. 30 Yr. Fixed 6.93% -0.02 0.66 15 Yr. Fixed 6.31% -0.04 0.70 30 Yr. Jumbo 7.03% +0.07 0.53 Updates Weekly - Last Update: 2/19 MBS / Treasuries UMBS 30YR 5.5 99.34 +0.29 Price / Yield Change MBS UMBS 5.5 99.34 +0.29 UMBS 6.0 101.12 +0.22 GNMA 5.5 99.71 +0.22 GNMA 6.0 100.94 +0.08 Pricing as of: 2/21 5:31PM EST 10 Year US Treasury 4.4303 -0.0765 Price / Yield Change US Treasury 2 YR Treasury 4.201 -0.074 5 YR Treasury 4.270 -0.077 7 YR Treasury 4.354 -0.077 10 YR Treasury 4.430 -0.077 30 YR Treasury 4.680 -0.073 Pricing as of: 2/21 5:31PM EST Latest Video Fed officials make clear policy is on hold until inflation comes down Existing home sales in January fall 4.9% Long-term facts for housing look really good, says Tri Pointe Homes CEO Former Cleveland Fed Pres. Loretta Mester: Inflation progress has stalled Around the Web CNBC Home sales drop sharply as prices hit an all-time high for January CNBC Steve Cohen says tariffs and DOGE’s cuts are negative for economy, market correction could be soon Eye on Housing Families Must Spend 38% of Their Income on Mortgage Payments Calculated Risk Blog Q1 GDP Tracking: Around 2% Calculated Risk Blog ICE: Mortgage Delinquency Rate Decreased in January CNBC Home price growth has slowed. But high costs, economic worries have some buyers retreating CNBC Treasury yields edge lower as investors weigh the state of the U.S. economy Calculated Risk Blog California Home Sales Down 1.9% YoY in January; 4th Look at Local Housing Markets Calculated Risk Blog Weekly Initial Unemployment Claims Increase to 219,000 Eye on Housing Single-Family Built-for-Rent Construction Falls Back CNBC Treasury yields lower as investors await further economic data Forex Live Philadelphia Fed Business index for February 18.1 vs 20.0 estimate Calculated Risk Blog LA Ports: Record Inbound Traffic for January

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