Mortgage loan activity dropped about 9.5 percent last week on a seasonally adjusted basis, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.
Refinance activity fell 11.4 percent last week, the MBA said. Refinancing also fell as a percentage of all mortgage activity for a fourth straight week to make up 64 percent of mortgage work, down from 66 percent.
Average mortgage rates remain above 5 percent, up nearly a full percentage point from an October low.
“Buyers have not returned to the market as rising rates have reduced affordability, to some extent,” said Michael Fratantoni, vice president of research and economics for the MBA.
