NAHB CEO Jerry Howard discusses the mass exodus from cities, creating high demand in the housing market and regulations that slow down the construction of houses.
Higher mortgage rates reduced demand for applications last week.
Orders fell 11.4% from the previous week, according to the latest survey by the Mortgage Bankers Association.
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The Refinance Index decreased 11 percent from the previous week.
The average interest rate on the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage contract increased from 2.98% to 3.08%.
“Mortgage rates have risen in six of the past eight weeks, with the 30-year fixed reference rate rising above 3 percent to its highest level since September 2020,” said Joel Kan, associate vice president of economic forecasts and the MBA sector. “As a result of these higher rates, overall refinancing activity has dropped 11 percent to its lowest level since December 2020, but has remained 50 percent higher than a year ago.”
HOUSE PRICES SCALE AT THE FASTEST PACE IN 7 YEARS
Texas saw a sharp drop in activity as the harsh winter affected many families and creditors. Mortgage activity dropped more than 40% in the state.
The seasonally adjusted Purchase Index decreased 12% from the previous week.
“The housing market in most parts of the country remains strong, with activity last week 7 percent higher than the year before,” added Kan.
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The survey covers more than 75% of all retail residential mortgage applications in the United States and has been conducted weekly since 1990.