NEW MORTGAGES DIP 35% FEWER HOME PURCHASES, REFINANCING BLAMED FOR FALL.Byline: Gregory J. Wilcox Staff Writer Mortgage applications plunged an annual 35 percent nationally last week, reflecting continued weakness in the refinance market and a softening of home purchases, an industry tracker reported Wednesday. Activity also fell 4.4 percent from a week earlier, even though interest rates bounced down, said the Washington, D.C.-based Mortgage Bankers Association. ``We're still seeing, on the refinance side, activity down close to 60 percent from a year ago,'' said Michael Fratantoni, the association's senior director for single-family research and economics. That's not surprising because rates have generally been above last year's level since early February. ``Refinance activity is bound to fall relative to last year's level,'' said Nima Nattagh, an analyst at DataQuick Information System's ANV ANV Army of Northern Virginia ANV Anvik, AK, USA (Airport Code) ANV Autoritatea Nationala a Vamilor (Romania) ANV Alaska Native village (US) ANV Association of Napata Volunteers Fusion unit, which tracks market trends. ``Purchase activity is down somewhat from last year's level, but it's still fairly stable. We still haven't seen any negative impact from the rise in rates.'' The association's purchase index for the week ended April 1 declined 5.3 percent from a week earlier and was down 6.7 percent from a year ago. The dip in purchase activity is in line with how the market is expected to behave this year compared with 2004's record sales pace. ``For the past several weeks we've seen a consistent decline in refinance activity while the purchase market has had more ups and downs ups and downs pl.n. Alternating periods of good and bad fortune or spirits. ups and downs Noun, pl alternating periods of good and bad luck or high and low spirits ,'' Fratantoni said. There was also more evidence this week that sales are not going to take a sharp turn down. On Monday, the National Association of Realtors The National Association of Realtors (NAR) is made up of residential and commercial realtors who are brokers, salespeople, property managers, appraisers, and counselors, and others working in the real estate industry. new Pending Home Sales Index shows the market is still strong. February's index was 2.2 percent above January and 10.4 percent above February 2004. It's based on pending sales of existing homes, including single-family homes and condominiums. The association considers a sale pending when the contract has been signed but the transaction has not closed. ``Although home sales eased in February, housing activity appears to be firming with a modest uptrend uptrend A series of price increases in a security or in the general market. Some investors believe a security tends to take on a certain inertia; as a result, these investors search for stock in an uptrend, thinking that it will probably continue to move in in the months ahead,'' David Lereah David Lereah was chief economist for the National Association of Realtors (NAR). Lereah served as the association's spokesman and cheerleader on economic forecasts, interest rates, home sales, mortgage rates, as well as other policy issues and trends affecting the United States , the association's chief economist The Chief Economist is a single position job class having primary responsibility for the development, coordination, and production of economic and financial analysis. It is distinguished from the other economist positions by the broader scope of responsibility encompassing the said in a statement. The interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages decreased to 5.91 percent last week from 6.08 percent one week earlier, according to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. the mortgage bankers survey. Philip Lipp, president of All West Mortgage Co. in North Hollywood, said rising rates and prices are making a dent in the market. ``In talking to Noun 1. talking to - a lengthy rebuke; "a good lecture was my father's idea of discipline"; "the teacher gave him a talking to" lecture, speech rebuke, reprehension, reprimand, reproof, reproval - an act or expression of criticism and censure; "he had to my peers, I hear that business is off. In my own business, we're doing fewer refi's. People have already jumped on that train,'' he said. Gregory J. Wilcox, (818) 713-3743 greg.wilcox(at)dailynews.com |
|
||||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion