MBA: Mortgage Applications Fall by 4.5%

Mortgage applications decreased 4.5 percent over the week last week with most of the decrease occurring among refinance applications, according to the latest survey from the ""Mortgage Bankers Association. (MBA)."":http://www.mbaa.org/default.htm

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Refinance activity fell 5 percent compared to the previous week, while purchase activity declined 2 percent.

Refinance applications continue to make up a majority of applications, taking an 81 percent share of total mortgage application activity for the week ending August 10.

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However, this is a slight decline from the previous week. Adjustable-rate mortgages made up 4 percent of total applications for the week.

Mortgage rates teeter slightly with no major change from last week. In fact, most rates varied by no more than 0.01 percentage points.

The rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage with a conforming loan balance remains steady at the previous week's rate of 3.76 percent, while points increased from 0.46 to 0.47.

Rates for both jumbo and FHA-backed 30-year fixed-rate loans decreased over the week.

The rate for 30-year fixed-rate jumbo loans decreased from 4.04 percent to 4.03 percent with points declining from 0.35 to 0.27.

Thirty-year fixed-rate FHA-backed loans decreased from 3.54 percent to 3.53 percent. Points remained steady at 0.49.

Fifteen-year fixed-rate loans and 5/1 ARMs experienced rate increases over the week.

The rate for 15-year fixed-rate loans rose from 3.08 percent to 3.12 percent. Points decreased from 0.41 to 0.40.

The rate for 5/1 ARMs increased from 2.72 percent to 2.73 percent with points declining from 0.4 to 0.36.