By Ovunc Kutlu
ISTANBUL (AA) - US mortgage applications continued to rise as mortgage interest rates declined, according to a report Wednesday by the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA).
The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, rose 0.3% on a seasonally adjusted basis for the week ending Nov. 24, compared to the previous week.
"There was a slight increase in applications overall, driven by a five percent increase in purchase applications, but refinance applications decreased over the week," MBA Vice President and Deputy Chief Economist Joel Kan said in a statement.
The 30-year fixed mortgage rate fell to 7.37%, from 7.41% the previous week, reaching its lowest in 10 weeks. The rate fell 25 basis points for the week ending Nov. 3, recording its largest single-week decline since July 2022.
The average contract interest rate for a 15-year fixed-rate mortgage fell to 6.88% from 6.89%.
The MBA survey covers more than 75% of US retail residential mortgage applications.