According to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Weekly Applications Survey, demand for loans to buy homes continued to climb last week, rising 5 percent from one week earlier. It was the third consecutive week of increases. Together with a slight uptick in refinance activity, the gains pushed total mortgage application demand 1.8 percent higher than the week before. Joel Kan, MBA’s associate vice president of economic and industry forecasting, says the improvement could be a sign that borrowers are trying to lock in low rates – which increased week over week – before they move any higher. “Despite the increase in rates, refinance applications rose slightly, driven by a 2 percent gain in conventional refinances,” Kan said. “Borrowers continue to lock in mortgages in anticipation of higher rates in the future.” Whatever the case, the housing market remains strong going into the holiday season, which typically sees mortgage loan demand slow down. The MBA’s weekly survey has been conducted since 1990 and covers 75 percent of all retail residential mortgage applications. (source)
