Mortgage Apps Flat

Mortgage applications for home purchases fell slightly in the week ended Friday and continue to meander at low levels after having reached a five-year low two weeks earlier.

The Mortgage Bankers Association reported earlier today that its index on mortgage applications for home purchases fell to 378.5 in the latest week from 381.3 the previous week. Two weeks ago the index fell to 340.1, its lowest since February 2003.

The index has been in a downward trend for about three years, although there was one interruption in the trend last spring and early summer when double-filings and a migration of filings from mortgage-brokers to banks boosted the amount of recorded filings (applications filed through mortgage-brokers are not included in the MBA data).

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Tony Crescenzi is the chief bond market strategist at Miller Tabak + Co., LLC, and advises many of the nation's top institutional investors on issues related to the bond market, the economy and other macro-related issues. At the request of the Federal Reserve, Crescenzi is a regular participant in the board's Livingston Survey of economic forecasters. He is also the author of the revised investment classic, The Money Market, first published in 1978 by Marcia Stigum, and The Strategic Bond Investor. At the time of publication, Crescenzi or Miller Tabak had no positions in the securities mentioned in this column, although holdings can change at any time. Under no circumstances does the information in this column represent a recommendation to buy or sell stocks. Crescenzi also is the founder of Bondtalk.com, a popular Web site covering the bond market and the economy. Crescenzi appreciates your feedback; click here to send him an email.

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