Key Highlights

  • Mortgage applications rose 3.4% in the week ended October 23, the first increase since August, the Mortgage Bankers Association said.
  • The 30-year fixed rate fell to 7.37%, a second straight weekly decline, still over a point above last year.
  • Applications for home purchases rose 3.8% from the previous week, and refinancing applications rose 2.7%, the association reported.
  • The increase ended a streak of seven weekly declines, following a 5.3% drop the prior week.

First Gain in Two Months

US mortgage applications rose 3.4% in the week ended October 23, the Mortgage Bankers Association reported. The increase is the first since August and ends a run of seven weekly declines.

The pickup follows a 5.3% drop in the week ended October 16, when purchase applications ran 18% below year-ago levels and refinancing activity sat 59% lower than a year earlier.

Rates Edge Lower

The average 30-year fixed mortgage rate edged down to 7.37% in the week ended October 23, a second consecutive weekly decline. It stood at 7.41% the week before and 7.50% the week before that, the highest since November 2023. The easing in borrowing costs accompanied the rise in applications.

The current rate remains more than one percentage point above the level for the same period last year.

Purchases and Refinancing

Applications for home purchases rose 3.8% from the previous week, and refinancing applications rose 2.7%. Many existing homeowners continue to hold mortgages with rates well below today's, which limits the incentive to refinance.

Adjustable-rate loans have drawn more attention as buyers look for lower monthly payments. They made up 10.5% of applications in the week ended October 9, the highest share since October 2025.

Affordability Still Constrains Buyers

Elevated home prices continue to challenge affordability and hold back prospective buyers, even as mortgage rates ease. Mortgage costs remain high by historical standards.

Other housing data point the same way. New single-family home sales slipped 0.6% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 676,000 in September. In Freddie Mac's survey, the 30-year rate averaged 7.32% last week, up more than 130 basis points since the US and Israel attacked Iran at the end of February. A National Association of Home Builders survey showed builders' sales expectations for the next six months at their lowest since April 2012, excluding the early pandemic plunge.

Prices have kept rising. The S&P Cotality Case-Shiller 20-City index gained 2.7% year over year in August, and the Federal Housing Finance Agency's index rose 0.3% from July.

Markers to Follow

The next weekly application readings, Freddie Mac's rate survey, builder sentiment, and housing starts and permits are the next data points.