Weekly mortgage applications in the United States declined in the week ending Feb. 20, according to data released from the Mortgage Bankers' Association (MBA) on Wednesday, which reported a 15.1% week-over-week decrease in applications.

In the previous week, applications were up 45.7%.

The portion of fixed-rate mortgages fell 15.3%, after rising 46.9% previously, while those opting for variable rates pulled back 3.5% after the previous week's 0.7% increase.

Compared to last year, the market composite index rose 9.8%.

The average loan size was $220.6k, compared to the previous week's $229.8k.

The average interest rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage moved up to 5.07% from 4.99%.

By Erik Kevin Franco and edited by Stephen Huebl
©CEP News Ltd. 2009