U.S. mortgage applications were little changed from the prior week, with an increase in demand for loans to buy homes offset by a drop in applications to refinance, an industry group said on Thursday.
The Mortgage Bankers Association said its mortgage applications index rose 0.1% to a seasonally adjusted 619.4 in the week ended June 29, nearing its lowest level since mid-February.
The MBA's purchase index rose 2% to 437.3.
But the refinancing applications gauge dropped 2.6% 1,687.2 on a seasonally adjusted basis to the lowest this year.
Refinancing represented 37.8% of all applications in the latest week, down from 38.7% the prior week.
On a four-week moving average, which smooths volatility, the overall applications index is down 0.2% at 637.1, the purchase index is up 0.2% at 445.4 and the refinancing index is down 1% at 1,762.6.
The average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage, excluding fees, fell 0.10 percentage point to 6.5%, the trade group said.