I really wish I understood mortgages a bit more

Does anyone look at these things more in detail? My data releases on Bloomberg today tell me that Mortgage applications are up:

"MBA Mortgage Applications (United States)
OBSERVATION PERIOD: NOV 21 (Weekly)
ACTUAL : 1.5%
PRIOR : -6.2%
REVISED : - -
SURVEY : - - "

What kind of applications are those? Are those new buyers? Refinancers? Mortagage rates have collapsed (should I say "decimated"?) over the past coupla weeks.


Is this new buyers stepping in and buying houses? Or is this something totally spurious?



Update at 12:40

This is what JTR has to say:
"lower rates will help refi's and that's it. the sales numbers
seem to indicate that there are no real 'new' buyers out there.
i dont think this helps a lot - maybe at the margin."