18.10.2006 19:32 - category: Real Estate: Real Estate Industry
NEW YORK (Reuters) -- U.S. mortgage applications fell last week, retreating from a nine-month high as home loan interest rates crept up, an industry trade group's data showed Wednesday.
The Mortgage Bankers Association said its seasonally adjusted index of mortgage application activity for the week ended Oct. 6 decreased 5.5 percent to 599.1, subtracting from the previous week's 11.9 percent surge to 633.9, which was its highest level since January.
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Borrowing costs on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages, excluding fees, averaged 6.27 percent, up 0.03 percent from the previous week, but below a four-year high of 6.86 percent touched in June.
The MBA's seasonally adjusted purchase mortgage index fell 5.3 percent to 383.3, substantially below its year-ago level of 469.5.
The purchase index is considered a timely gauge of U.S. home sales.
The group's seasonally adjusted index of refinancing applications decreased 5.8 percent to 1,857.0.
