By Diana Olick | CNBC
Even a small rise in mortgage rates was enough to cut off the spigot on refinancing.
Total loan application volume fell 2.6 percent last week from the previous week, on a seasonally adjusted basis, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA). The drop was fueled by a six percent fall-off in refinance applications.
The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances ($417,000 or less) increased to 4.17 percent from 4.13 percent for the week ending October 31st. By the start of this week, they hit their highest level in nearly a month, according to Mortgage News Daily (MND).
