The volume of mortgage applications in the US inched higher by 0.3% from the previous week on the period ending January 2nd, loosely holding the 10% pullback from the last full week of December, according to data compiled by the Mortgage Bankers Association. Applications levels remained near their lowest since the start of August last year despite the decline in benchmark mortgage rates, which fell to a 15-month low. Applications for a contract to refinance a mortgage, which are more sensitive to short-term changes in interest rates, jumped by 7.4%. This was offset by the 6.2% slump in applications for a mortgage to buy a new home.
