Mortgage claims drop in US
Source: Bloomberg News |
August 25, 2011, Thursday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
MORTGAGE applications in the United States fell last week as a measure of purchases slumped to the lowest level since December 1996.
The Mortgage Bankers Association's index dropped 2.4 percent in the period ended August 19 from the prior week, the Washington-based group said yesterday. The group's purchase measure dropped 5.7 percent, while the refinancing gauge fell 1.7 percent.
Unemployment above 9 percent and declining consumer confidence are keeping potential buyers sidelined, indicating housing is still a weak link in the economy. The industry that precipitated the recession is burdened by an excess of distressed properties that have driven down prices.
"Purchase activity remains subdued despite record-low mortgage rates," Michael Larson, a housing analyst at Weiss Research in Jupiter, Florida, said before the report. "A lack of buyer confidence and anemic job growth is keeping buyers on the sidelines."
The share of applicants seeking to refinance a loan rose to 79.8 percent, the largest share since mid-November, from 78.8 percent the prior week.
The average rate on a 30-year fixed loan increased to 4.39 percent from 4.32 percent the prior week. The average rate on a 15-year fixed mortgage rose to 3.56 percent from 3.47 percent, the report showed.
Recent data signal residential real estate continues to struggle. Sales of previously owned homes dropped 3.5 percent in July to a 4.67 million annual rate, the weakest since November, figures from the National Association of Realtors showed on August 18.
A report yesterday from the Commerce Department showed new homes sales in July fell to a 298,000 annual pace, the slowest in five months.
Home values dropped by the most in 18 months for the year ended in May. The S&P/Case-Shiller index of property values in 20 cities slid 4.5 percent from a year earlier, the group said last month. The index was 32 percent below its July 2006 peak.
Lender delays in processing home-loan defaults, while crimping current distressed transactions, will push as many as 1 million US foreclosures from this year into 2012 or beyond, RealtyTrac Inc, a housing data provider, said last month.
The Mortgage Bankers Association's index dropped 2.4 percent in the period ended August 19 from the prior week, the Washington-based group said yesterday. The group's purchase measure dropped 5.7 percent, while the refinancing gauge fell 1.7 percent.
Unemployment above 9 percent and declining consumer confidence are keeping potential buyers sidelined, indicating housing is still a weak link in the economy. The industry that precipitated the recession is burdened by an excess of distressed properties that have driven down prices.
"Purchase activity remains subdued despite record-low mortgage rates," Michael Larson, a housing analyst at Weiss Research in Jupiter, Florida, said before the report. "A lack of buyer confidence and anemic job growth is keeping buyers on the sidelines."
The share of applicants seeking to refinance a loan rose to 79.8 percent, the largest share since mid-November, from 78.8 percent the prior week.
The average rate on a 30-year fixed loan increased to 4.39 percent from 4.32 percent the prior week. The average rate on a 15-year fixed mortgage rose to 3.56 percent from 3.47 percent, the report showed.
Recent data signal residential real estate continues to struggle. Sales of previously owned homes dropped 3.5 percent in July to a 4.67 million annual rate, the weakest since November, figures from the National Association of Realtors showed on August 18.
A report yesterday from the Commerce Department showed new homes sales in July fell to a 298,000 annual pace, the slowest in five months.
Home values dropped by the most in 18 months for the year ended in May. The S&P/Case-Shiller index of property values in 20 cities slid 4.5 percent from a year earlier, the group said last month. The index was 32 percent below its July 2006 peak.
Lender delays in processing home-loan defaults, while crimping current distressed transactions, will push as many as 1 million US foreclosures from this year into 2012 or beyond, RealtyTrac Inc, a housing data provider, said last month.
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