Home Purchases Carry US Mortgage Applications

Mortgage applications in the US jumped 7.8% from the previous week on the period ending April 17th, extending the 1.8% increase from the earlier period, according to data compiled by the Mortgage Bankers Association. The increase was aligned with a 7bps reduction in benchmark mortgage rates during the period, tracking the pullback in long-term Treasury yields as markets gauged risks to domestic inflation in a backdrop of higher energy prices. Applications for contracts to refinance a mortgage, which are more sensitive to short-term interest rate changes, jumped by 5.8%. In turn, applications for a mortgage to purchase a home, surged 10% following multiple weeks of deferral purchases.

Mortgage applications in the US increased 1.8% in the week ended April 10th 2026, the first rise in five weeks, following a 0.8% drop in the previous period, data from the Mortgage Bankers Association showed. Refinancing applications which are most sensitive to weekly interest rate moves, jumped 5.1% while those to purchase a home fell 1%. “Purchase activity remained subdued as potential homebuyers remained hesitant given the current economic uncertainty, which kept purchase applications below last year’s level for the second consecutive week,” Joel Kan, an MBA economist said. Meanwhile, the average US 30-year fixed mortgage rate for conforming loans of $806,500 or less fell for a 2nd consecutive week to 6.42% in the week ending April 10, 2026, reaching the lowest value in about a month.

Mortgage applications in the US eased by 0.8% from the previous week on the period ending April 3rd, extending the cumulative 28.5% plunge from the three previous weeks, according to data compiled by the Mortgage Bankers Association. The recent pullback was extended despite the respite for benchmark mortgage rates, which pulled back from the seven-month high last week. Long-dated Treasury yields retreated from recent peaks in the period as markets considered the growth side of stagflation concerns, easing bets that the Fed could return to hikes this year to contain energy-induced price growth. Still, credit sentiment for households remained muted on the large levels of uncertainty. Applications for a contract to refinance a mortgage, which are more sensitive to short-term changes in interest rates, fell by 3%. In turn, applications for a mortgage to buy a new home inched higher by 1% but fell 7% from the previous year, the first annual decline since January 2025.