Mortgage applications drop

Washington -- The volume of applications for U.S. mortgages decreased last week, falling by a seasonally adjusted 24.5 percent, an industry group said.

The Market Composite Index, which measures mortgage loan application volume, fell from 795.4 to 600.6 in the week ending Feb. 6, the Mortgage Bankers Association said in a release Wednesday.

The Refinance Index also decreased, dropping 30.3 percent to 2,722.7, the MBA said.

The average interest rate for 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages decreased from 5.28 percent to 5.19 percent with points increasing from 1.12 to 1.2, the organization said.

Rates for the average 15-year, fixed-rate mortgage fell from 5.15 percent to 5 percent. Points in 15-year, fixed-rate mortgages were unchanged at 1.21.

The average interest rate for one-year adjustable rate mortgages rose from 6.09 percent with an average 0.07 points to 6.22 percent with 0.22 points, the report said.

Copyright 2009 by United Press International.