WASHINGTON, Oct. 2 (Xinhua) -- Mortgage applications increased significantly in the United States as mortgage rates dropped, according to a report from Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) on Wednesday.
For the week ending Sept. 27, MBA's market composite index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, increased 8.1 percent from a week earlier.
"Mortgage rates mostly decreased last week, with the 30-year fixed rate dropping below 4 percent for the sixth time in the past nine weeks," said Joel Kan, associate vice president of Economic and Industry Forecasting of MBA.
Besides, the refinance index, which measures the activity to replace higher rate mortgages with lower rate mortgages, increased 14 percent from the previous week, according to MBA.
"Borrowers responded to these lower rates, leading to a 14-percent increase in refinance applications," said Kan, "although refinance activity slowed in September compared to August. The months together were the strongest since October 2016."
"The slight changes in rates are still causing large swings in refinance volume, and we expect this sensitivity to persist," said Kan.
MBA's purchase index before seasonal adjustment increased 1 percent from the previous week. After removing the influences of predictable seasonal patterns, the seasonally adjusted purchase index increased 1 percent from a week earlier, according to MBA.
"Purchase applications also increased and remained more than 9 percent higher than a year ago. Low rates and healthy housing market fundamentals continue to support solid levels of purchase activity," Kan added.
