The improvement coincides with a drop in the rate on standard 30-year mortgages that finance about three-quarters of all U.S. homes.

The seasonally-adjusted index of total mortgage applications, including refinancings, rose 1.8 percent in the week ended Sept. 1 to 566.3, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. The index is at its highest since early July, but is well below the year-ago level of 771.6, the association said in a statement.
 
The component index of home purchases increased 3.7 percent to 389.7, while the gauge of refinancing declined 0.9 percent to 1,594.7, the MBA said.

Edwina Baniqued