Mortgage Application Volume Down 19%

Home loan applications volume fell by 18.9 percent last week, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

The week-to-week decline was led by a 30 percent drop in refinance application volume. The association's purchase index decreased by 4.5 percent over the same time.

The refinance share of mortgage activity was 46.4 percent, down from 54 percent a week earlier. The average contract interest rate for a 30-year fixed mortgage was 5.34 percent compared to 5.44 percent the previous week.