WASHINGTON – Lower mortgage rates have led to a spike in applications, particularly for refinancings.
The average interest rate on a 30-year fixed mortgage fell to 6.49% in the week ending Sept. 5, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA). That is the lowest since October 2024.
The MBA reported the lower rates pushed more borrowers to act, with refinancing applications up 12% from the week before and 34% higher than the same week last year. Buyers also became more active, filing 7% more purchase applications in a week, and 23% higher than a year earlier.
Up in ARMs
Refinancing made up almost half of all mortgage applications, the MBA said.
There was also a rise in demand for adjustable-rate loans.
“The downward rate movement spurred the strongest week of borrower demand since 2022, with both purchase and refinance applications moving higher,” Joel Kan, MBA economist, said in a statement.
