WASHINGTON — Mortgage rates fell last week to their lowest level since April, but demand for home loans remained sluggish even as refinancing applications ticked up, the Mortgage Bankers Association reported.
Total mortgage application volume declined 1.2% from the previous week on a seasonally adjusted basis, according to MBA’s index. The average rate on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming balances of $806,500 or less slipped to 6.64% from 6.69%.
Other Findings
According to the MBA, other findings in the new data reveal:
• Points decreased to 0.59 from 0.60, including the origination fee, for loans with a 20% down payment.
• Refinance applications, more sensitive to weekly rate changes, rose 1% for the week and were 20% higher than a year earlier, even though rates were slightly lower then.
• Purchase applications fell 3% for the week but were 17% higher than a year ago.
‘More Appealing’
“Refinance applications saw a small increase from the previous week, driven by FHA and VA refinance applications, but conventional refinances declined,” Joel Kan, MBA’s deputy chief economist, said in a statement. “The FHA rate is averaging about 30 basis points lower than the conventional rate in 2025, which has made those loans relatively more appealing to eligible borrowers.”
He added that while buyers today face more housing inventory compared with last year, higher prices and affordability constraints continue to weigh on sales.
