Total mortgage activity – including refinances and home purchases – dropped 4 percent last week on a seasonally adjusted basis even though mortgage rates are near all-time lows, the Mortgage Bankers Association reported Wednesday. Broken out, refinance applications dropped 4 percent from the previous week. Still, refinance applications are nearly 48 percent higher than the same week a year ago. ICYMI: Check out last week's report. Applications for home purchases – viewed as a gauge of future home-buying activity – also dropped 4 percent last week, reaching the lowest level since February. Yet, applications for home purchases remain 10 percent higher than the same week a year ago, MBA reports. "A strong job market and low rates continue to support home sales," says Michael Fratantoni, MBA’s chief economist. MBA reports the average on the 30-year-fixed rate mortgage remains near all-time lows, decreasing last week to 3.64 percent (from 3.65 percent the previous week).

Source: CNBC