U.S. mortgage rates last week topped 7% for the first time in a month, while home purchase applications fell by the most since mid-February.
The contract rate on a 30-year fixed mortgage rose 10 basis points to 7.01% in the week ended April 5, according to Mortgage Bankers Association data released Wednesday. That depressed the group’s index of mortgage applications for home purchases, which slipped 4.7% to the lowest level in a month.
Home sales have shown a bit of momentum, with some economists suggesting people are getting accustomed to mortgage rates that are double those from early 2022. The Federal Reserve has so far held off on lowering interest rates to tame inflation, and policymakers will get a fresh look at consumer prices in data to be released later this morning.
Despite the drop in mortgage applications for home purchases, MBA’s overall index of applications managed to eke out a slight gain due to a jump in refinancing activity. That gauge rose to the highest level since early February.
The MBA survey, which has been conducted weekly since 1990, uses responses from mortgage bankers, commercial banks and thrifts. The data cover more than 75% of all retail residential mortgage applications in the U.S.
This article was provided by Bloomberg News.