The MBA mortgage applications index is 11.2 percent higher in the March 7 week. It is 17.1 percent higher than four weeks ago and 33.6 percent higher than a year earlier. The purchase index is 7.0 percent higher in the current week and 1.0 percent higher than four weeks ago and 4.7 percent higher than a year earlier. The refinancing index is 16.2 percent higher and is 42.3 percent higher than four weeks ago and 89.7 percent higher than a year earlier. In the March 7 week, refinancing accounted for 45.6 percent of mortgage applications compared to 43.8 percent in the prior week.

The rate for a 30-year fixed rate mortgage is down for the sixth straight week and has returned to where it was in October 2024. The dip in rates may be an expression of a little pent-up demand. It remains to be seen if buyers continue to come into the market at the start of the spring buying season. If the price is right for the right unit, the housing market may not be as weak as feared back in January. Some buyers are using adjustable rate mortgages as an initially cheaper way to afford a home purchase and may be hoping for lower rates in the future so they can refinance.

The contract rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage is 6.67 percent in the current week. This is 6 basis points lower than the prior week, 28 basis points lower than four weeks ago, and 17 basis points lower than a year earlier. The contract rate for a 5-year adjustable-rate mortgage is 5.81 percent in the week. This is 4 basis points lower than the prior week, 39 basis points lower than four weeks ago, and 57 basis points lower than a year earlier. In the March 7 week, adjustable-rate mortgages accounted for 7.2 percent of mortgage applications compared to 5.8 percent in the prior week.

The fixed-rate mortgage index is 9.6 percent higher in the March 7 week. It is 15.6 percent higher than four weeks ago and 34.4 percent higher than this week last year. The adjustable-rate mortgage index is 37.0 percent higher and is 40.9 percent higher than four weeks ago and 25.2 percent higher than a year ago.

The Mortgage Bankers' Association compiles various mortgage loan indexes. The purchase applications index measures applications at mortgage lenders. This is a leading indicator for single-family home sales and housing construction.

This provides a gauge of not only the demand for housing, but economic momentum. People have to be feeling pretty comfortable and confident in their own financial position to buy a house. Furthermore, this narrow piece of data has a powerful multiplier effect through the economy, and therefore across the markets and your investments. By tracking economic data such as the Mortgage Bankers Association purchase applications, investors can gain specific investment ideas as well as broad guidance for managing a portfolio.

Each time the construction of a new home begins, it translates to more construction jobs, and income which will be pumped back into the economy. Once a home is sold, it generates revenues for the home builder and the realtor. It brings a myriad of consumption opportunities for the buyer. Refrigerators, washers, dryers and furniture are just a few items new home buyers might purchase. The economic"ripple effect" can be substantial especially when you think a hundred thousand new households around the country are doing this every month.

Since the economic backdrop is the most pervasive influence on financial markets, housing construction has a direct bearing on stocks, bonds and commodities. In a more specific sense, trends in the MBA purchase applications index carry valuable clues for the stocks of home builders, mortgage lenders and home furnishings companies.