US Mortgage Applications Fall for Fourth Consecutive Week

According to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending Friday, September 25, the Market Composite Index—a measure of mortgage loan application volume—decreased 6.0% on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier. On an unadjusted basis, the Index increased 6.0%.

The Refinance Index decreased 9.0% from the previous week and was 56.0% lower than the same week one year ago.

The seasonally adjusted Purchase Index decreased 4.0% from one week earlier. On an unadjusted basis, the Purchase Index decreased 5.0% compared with the prior week and was 14.0% lower than the same week one year ago.

In remarks accompanying the release, MBA Vice President and Deputy Chief Economist Joel Kan said:

“Mortgage rates jumped to their highest level in almost three years, pushing borrowers to the sidelines. The 30-year fixed rate increased for the sixth consecutive week to 7.3%, the highest rate since November 2023. Mortgage applications fell by 6% due to the recent surge in rates, with purchase and refinance applications both declining to their slowest weekly pace since 2025. Government refinances declined 13%, with both FHA and VA applications experiencing double digit decreases over the week.

ARM loans, with rates around 80 basis points lower than fixed rate loans, accounted for 10.3% of applications, the highest share since October 2025.”