Mortgage activity declined in week

The volume of applications for U.S. mortgages decreased last week, falling by a seasonally adjusted 16.2 percent, an industry group said.

The Market Composite Index, which measures mortgage loan application volume, fell from 786 to 658.7 in the week ending May 29, the Mortgage Bankers Association said in a release Wednesday.

The Refinance Index also fell, dropping 24.1 percent to 2,953.6, the MBA said.

The average interest rate for 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages increased from 4.81 percent to 5.25 percent with points falling from 1.28 to 1.02, the organization said.

Rates for the average 15-year, fixed-rate mortgage increased from 4.44 percent to 4.8 percent. Points in 15-year, fixed-rate mortgages fell from 1.16 to 1.1.

The average interest rate for one-year adjustable rate mortgages rose from 6.55 percent with an average 0.12 points to 6.61 percent with 0.15 points, the report said.