Posted on 06/07/2006 5:58:26 AM PDT by Hydroshock
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) - The number of people applying for home loans fell last week, an industry group said Wednesday.
The Mortgage Bankers Association said its seasonally adjusted index of mortgage application activity for the week ended June 2 fell 1.4 percent to 534.4 from the previous week's 541.9.
Borrowing costs on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages, excluding fees, averaged 6.60 percent, down 0.06 of a percentage point from the previous week.
The MBA's seasonally adjusted purchase mortgage index rose slightly to 395.6 from the previous week's 395.5. The index is considered a reliable gauge of U.S. home sales.
The trade group's seasonally adjusted index of refinancing applications fell 3.8 percent to 1356.0 from 1409.0 the previous week.
The refinance share of mortgage activity decreased to 34.2 percent of total applications, from 34.9 percent last week.
The percentage of adjustable-rate mortgage activity decreased to 29.4 percent of applications, from 30.7 percent prior
(Excerpt) Read more at money.cnn.com ...
Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!
I have a former coworker that left about 11 months ago to work as a mortgage broker. I heard over lunch yesterday she was let go at the major back she worked at.
OK, so the mortgage application index fell, but the purchase mortgage index rose. That means that home sales are still increasing, but refinances are down.
VERY deceptive title - focuses on total applications rather than home sales.
You are the new Willie Green. The housing market will remain strong until the next recession. You can take that to the bank.
Maybe, But I figure the next recession is about 1 year or so way.
Depends if the congress raises taxes or not. The europeans are just starting to see their economies move, Japan has just recently broken free from 15 years in the doldrums, and China and India show little sign of slowing down significantly. The US economy has pulled the world up by the bootstraps and a recession in the near term seems highly unlikely.
Inventory continues to stay low and bidding wars still happening all over Seattle. Meidan home price continues to rise and the entry level home market a nightmare.
The first couple months of 2006, I thought the market had finally cooled off. But it's on fire again....... A raise of 40 thousand dollars in the median price since March.
http://www.housing-watch.com/regionview.aspx?city=Seattle&pct=50&g=m
Here in Boise I know someone who sold a condo last week and it came down to a bidding war. In 12 months they sold a property they had purchased for 126K for 189K.
If it is Willie, welcome back!
Once again, the media is deceiving. If I'm not mistaken, this 'movement' number also includes lending / underwriter institutions buying mortgages from one another. So, if financial institutions are adjusting assets for individual reasons, let's say something like a cooling off in the economy, is this not also extremely deceiving?
Kinda akin to 'Don't stop a-milkin' till the utter runs dry'?
Willie who?
Seattle is not a reflection of the market as a whole, nationwide. Arizona and Florida are looking at a total bloodbath, and CA is teetering. Pockets of CA are still selling, but places like OC and Sacramento are screwed.
http://thehousingbubbleblog.com/
Make up your own mind, but I see a big storm coming.
Willie was your much beloved predecessor. He always posted articles that had economic doom and gloom as the storyline. His main thrust was the loss of "good" jobs to overseas markets. But anything painting the economy as in dire straights would suffice.
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