Refinancing Chills U.S. Home Purchases Amid Economic ‘Squeeze’

Amy Haenner, a broker at Legacy Lending Group in Fort Wayne, Indiana, is processing eight mortgages this week. None of them are for home purchases.

A year ago, her business was evenly split between home- purchase loans and refinancings that reduce interest rates on existing mortgages. That’s changed as a slowing U.S. economy curtails buying demand and encourages current owners to save cash by locking in near-record-low borrowing costs, she said.