Applications for purchase loans were down on an annual basis last week, even as interest rates fell to a four-month low.
Purchase loan applications increased a seasonally adjusted 1 percent for the week ending Oct. 18 compared to a week earlier but were down 2 percent year over year, according to the latest Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey.
During the same period, refinance applications slipped 1 percent, MBA reported.
The drop in purchase loans came as the average rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage with a balance of $417,500 or less dropped to its lowest level since June 2013, falling to 4.39 percent from 4.46 percent.
Source: MBA