Investing.com - The number of mortgage application in the U.S. fell last week, after rising sharply the week before, industry data showed on Wednesday.
In a report, the Mortgage Bankers Association said their mortgage market index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, declined by a seasonally adjusted 3.5% in the week ending October 23 to 417.4. That follows a gain of 11.8% to 432.7 in the preceding week.
"Between the recent TILA-RESPA regulatory change and the Columbus Day holiday, mortgage application volume has been more volatile than normal. However, that appears to be settling down somewhat," said Michael Fratantoni, chief economist for the MBA.
The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances inched up to 3.98% from 3.95% in the previous week.
The survey covers over 75% of U.S. retail residential mortgage applications, according to MBA.