Mortgage rates climb even as loan size hits another record

Mortgage rates continue to climb, putting a dent in the demand for mortgage applications.

Interest in mortgage applications declined 8.1% from a week ago, according to the weekly survey from the Mortgage Banker's Association.

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With rates rising, interest in refinancing continued to decline.

The Refinance Index dropped 7% and the Purchasing Index fell 10%.

However, as rates climb, those interested in buying are helping push up the size of the loan they are interested in.

"The average loan size again hit another record high at $446,000', said Joel Kan, MBA’s associate vice president of economic and industry forecasting. "Activity continues to be dominated by larger loan balances, as inventory remains tight for entry-level buyers."

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The average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage increased in the past week to 3.83% from 3.78%.

"Mortgage rates followed the U.S. 10-year yield and other sovereign bonds as the Federal Reserve and other key global central banks responded to growing inflationary pressures and signaled that they will start to remove accommodative policies," added Kan.

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The survey covers over 75% of all U.S. retail residential mortgage applications and has been conducted weekly since 1990.