Investing.com - The number of mortgage applications in the U.S. rose last week, boosted by lower interest rates, industry data showed on Wednesday.
In a report, the Mortgage Bankers Association said their mortgage market index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, increased by a seasonally adjusted 2.9% in the week ending June 17 to 522.2. That follows a decline of 2.4% to 507.7 in the preceding week.
Applications to refinance home loans drove the volume, rising 7% from the previous week, seasonally adjusted.
The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances inched down to a three-year low of 3.76% from 3.79% in the preceding week.
"Rates fell on concerns that Britain may vote to leave the European Union later this week. Although beliefs about the likelihood of an exit have since moderated, the 'Brexit' vote promises to bring continued volatility to markets," said Lynn Fisher, MBA vice president of research.
The survey covers over 75% of U.S. retail residential mortgage applications, according to MBA.