Volume of purchase mortgage applications drops to 13-year low, refinance activity also down

Mortgage application volume falls by 12.2 percent

WASHINGTON — The number of customers applying for a mortgage to purchase a property fell to the lowest level in 13 years last week, a sign the housing market is struggling without government incentives.

The Mortgage Bankers Association said Wednesday purchase volume declined 5.7 percent and is at its lowest point since February 1997.

Michael Fratantoni, MBA’s vice president of research and economics, says purchase applications are now 35 percent below their level of four weeks ago. He says homebuyers have not yet returned to the market following the expiration of the homebuyer tax credit at the end of April.