Mortgage demand in U.S. up 40% compared to 2019

Sept. 9 (UPI) -- Demand for mortgages in the United States is up 40% over this same time last year, according to data Wednesday from an industry report.

The Mortgage Bankers Association said in the report that mortgage applications are way up and the data exhibit a legitimately rebounding housing market.

"Applications were up almost 3% on a weekly basis and the average loan size continued to increase, hitting a survey high at $368,600," Joel Kan, MBA associate vice president of economic and industry forecasting, said in a statement.

"Highlighting the strong overall demand for buying a home, conventional, VA and FHA purchase applications all increased last week."

The Refinance Index was also 3% higher for the week and up 60% year-to-year, the report noted.

For loans up to $510,000, the average interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages is down to 3.07%, the MBA analysis said.

"Mortgage rates declined last week, with a noteworthy five-basis-point decrease in the 15-year fixed rate to a new record low of 2.62%," Kan added. "The drop in rates led to a rebound in refinancing activity, driven mainly by borrowers applying for conventional loans."