A slowdown in refinancing pulled down the total mortgage application volume last week as changes to certain government-loan programs made refinances less lucrative. Refinance volume now stands at its lowest level since June 2009.

Refinance volume now stands at its lowest level since June 2009, CNBC reported.

Total mortgage application volume fell 3.7 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis last week from the previous week, and are nearly 31 percent lower than the same week a year ago, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

"One driver of the drop in volume last week was a sharp decrease in VA refinance applications, which fell more than 17 percent," said Mike Fratantoni, MBA's chief economist.

"On Feb. 1, Ginnie Mae implemented new criteria regarding the inclusion of VA-streamlined refinances in certain mortgage-backed-security pools, and this likely led to a decrease in streamlined refinances last week."

The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances, $424,100 or less, decreased to 4.32 percent from 4.35 percent. Points remained unchanged at 0.34, including the origination fee, for 80 percent loan-to-value ratio loans. The rate is still higher than it was a year ago.

(Newsmax wire services contributed to this report).

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