More Consumers Apply for Mortgages in Latest Week

Reuters
Updated
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By Luciana Lopez

NEW YORK -- Applications for U.S. home mortgages rose last week as demand for both refinancing and purchase loans increased, an industry group said Wednesday.

The Mortgage Bankers Association said its seasonally adjusted index of mortgage application activity, which includes both refinancing and home purchase demand, rose 2.8 percent in the week ended Aug. 22.

The MBA's seasonally adjusted index of refinancing applications rose 2.8 percent, while the gauge of loan requests for home purchases, a leading indicator of home sales, rose 2.6 percent.

Fixed 30-year mortgage rates averaged 4.28 percent in the week, down 1 basis point from the week before.

The survey covers more than 75 percent of U.S. retail residential mortgage applications, according to MBA.

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