(Reuters) - Applications for U.S. home mortgages rose last week as activity picked up and rates fell, an industry group said on Wednesday.
The Mortgage Bankers Association said its seasonally adjusted index of mortgage application activity, which includes both refinancing and home purchase demand, rose 0.9 percent in the week ended December 19.
The MBA's seasonally adjusted index of refinancing applications rose 1.1 percent, while the gauge of loan requests for home purchases, a leading indicator of home sales, rose 1.3 percent.
Fixed 30-year mortgage rates averaged 4.02 percent in the week, down 4 basis points from 4.06 percent the week before. The 4.02-percent rate is the lowest since May 2013, MBA said.
The survey covers over 75 percent of U.S. retail residential mortgage applications, according to MBA.
(Reporting By David Gaffen; Editing by Diane Craft)
