WASHINGTON – The Mortgage Bankers Association’s index of applications to buy or refinance a home loan rose last week to 421.6, a 0.5-percent increase from the seasonally adjusted basis of 419.3 the previous week. However, the association said in a news release, the index was down 31.2 percent compared with the same week last year.

The figure from two weeks ago represented an eight-year low for the index, the association said. (READ MORE)

The refinance index increased 0.3 percent to 1038 last week, while the purchase index increased 0.6 percent from last week’s figure to 315.9.

The average rate on a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage fell to 6.44 percent last week from 6.47 percent, the report said. The average rate on a 15-year mortgage fell to 5.94 percent from 5.99 percent the week prior.

The Mortgage Bankers Association is a trade group representing the real estate finance industry. Its 3,000 member companies include mortgage firms, commercial banks, thrifts, life insurance companies and others. Additional information, including the MBA’s Weekly Application Survey, is available at www.mortgagebankers.org