Home loan application volume increased 13 percent last week as refinance activity jumped 17 percent from the prior week to the highest level in more than a year, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.
Applications for home purchases fell 3.4 percent and were nearly 40 percent behind levels recorded during the same week a year ago.
Refinancing made up 81.4 percent of all home loan application volume during the week, an increase from 78.1 percent the prior week.
The average contract interest rate for 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages was 4.6 percent.
