Mortgage demand falls to nearly half of what it was a year ago, as interest rates continue to rise

Mortgage demand continued to crumble last week, as mortgage rates climbed to their highest level since 2010. Total application volume fell 5% last week compared with the previous week and was nearly half of what it was one year ago, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s seasonally adjusted index.

The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances ($647,200 or less) increased to 5.20% last week from 5.13%, with points rising to 0.66 from 0.63 (including the origination fee) for loans with a 20% down payment....