ReFi Week ending 8/13

Overall mortgage activity improved despite a slight uptick in long-term interest rates. MBA reports that the average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages increased to 4.60 percent, up from 4.57 percent the week before. Rates for 15-year mortgage contracts rose from 3.95 percent to 3.99 percent.

The numbers for variable rate loans, on the other hand, are heading in the opposite direction. MBA’s data show that 1-year adjustable-rate mortgages (ARMs) dropped from 7.00 percent to 6.90 percent last week. Fannie Mae has said it projects the share of ARM loans to more than double within the next two years.