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The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) Builder Application Survey (BAS) results showed mortgage applications for new home purchases increased by 0.3 percent compared to last month for April 2015. No adjustments for typical seasonal patterns were included in this data.
MBA's Builder Application Survey collects data from mortgage subsidiaries of home builders across the country and uses this data, as well as data from other sources, to provide consumers with an early estimate of new home sales volumes at the national, state, and metro level.
Mike Fratantoni, chief economist at MBA, noted that applications were relatively flat for April, but builder applications for March and April were at their peak since they began gathering data in August 2012. Builder applications for new home mortgages were up 16 percent year-over-year.
"Although our survey indicates there was likely a slight decrease in new homes sales in April, we had seen increased activity earlier in the year, so borrowers who were able to enter the market got a head start on the traditional spring buying season," Fratantoni said.
According to survey data, conventional loans were 67 percent of loan applications, FHA loans were 18.8 percent, RHS/USDA loans were 1.4 percent, and VA loans were 12.8 percent. The average loan size of new homes reached its highest level in history at $315,670 for April, an increase from $314,394 in March.
Based on data from the BAS, the MBA estimates new single-family home sales were running at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 487,000 units in April 2015, a decrease of 4.5 percent from the March pace of 510,000 units. This estimate is taken from mortgage application information, assumptions about market coverage, and other factors. The MBA estimates, on an unadjusted basis, there were 48,000 new home sales in April 2015, a decrease of 2 percent from 49,000 new home sales in March.
Information about the types of loans used by new home buyers can also be found in this data. The Census Bureau conducts official estimates of new home sales every month based on the amount of mortgage contracts that are signed.
View the full MBA's Builder Applications Survey at: MBA.org
