The rise in weekly mortgage applications made the headlines at USA Today. It's not clear that this is exactly headline news.
The increase reported for the week was 3.0 percent. This followed a sharp 19.2 percent drop the previous week. Weekly data are always going to be erratic, but the mortgage application data provide even more room for error than most, since banks are changing their lending standards week by week. As a result, many more mortgages are being denied now than a year ago and probably even than a week ago. This means that the same number of applications corresponds to fewer actual mortgages. So, a bit of caution should be used in presenting these data.
The American Prospect is nonprofit, reader-funded journalism—and we need your help.
Our reporters dig deep, hold power to account, and explain how policy shapes people’s lives. If you value independent journalism that goes beyond the headlines, now’s the time to support it.
Here’s how you can help: • Donate to power fearless reporting
• Subscribe to get our print magazine 6x/year.