WASHINGTON—Mortgage applications increased 2.2% from one week earlier, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending January 31, 2025.
Last week’s results include an adjustment for the Martin Luther King holiday.
The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, increased 2.2% on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier. On an unadjusted basis, the Index increased 19% compared with the previous week. The Refinance Index increased 12% from the previous week and was 17% higher than the same week one year ago. The seasonally adjusted Purchase Index decreased 4% from one week earlier. The unadjusted Purchase Index increased 15% compared with the previous week and was 0.2% higher than the same week one year ago.
“Mortgage rates moved lower last week, consistent with lower Treasury yields following the FOMC meeting and a volatile week for stock market. The 30-year fixed rate declined to its lowest level in six weeks at 6.97%,” said Joel Kan, MBA’s vice president and deputy chief economist. “Mortgage applications responded to these lower rates and were up for the week overall, driven by a 12% increase in refinance applications, which had their strongest week since December 2024.
“Purchase activity had a tougher week, with declines across all loan types,” continued Kan. “The average loan size for a purchase loan has increased since the start of the year and continued that trend last week with weaker government purchase activity, which reached $447,300, the highest level since October 2024.”
Refi Share
The refinance share of mortgage activity increased to 39.0% of total applications from 37.1% the previous week. The adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) share of activity remained unchanged at 5.8% of total applications.
The FHA share of total applications decreased to 16.2% from 16.7% the week prior. The VA share of total applications increased to 13.3% from 13.2% the week prior. The USDA share of total applications remained unchanged at 0.5% from the week prior, MBA said.
The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances ($766,550 or less) decreased to 6.97% from 7.02%, with points increasing to 0.64 from 0.63 (including the origination fee) for 80% loan-to-value ratio (LTV) loans. The effective rate decreased from last week.
The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with jumbo loan balances (greater than $766,550) decreased to 7.01% from 7.02%, with points decreasing to 0.48 from 0.57 (including the origination fee) for 80% LTV loans. The effective rate decreased from last week, MBA said.
Contract Interest Rate
The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages backed by the FHA decreased to 6.69% from 6.72%, with points decreasing to 0.84 from 0.94 (including the origination fee) for 80% LTV loans. The effective rate decreased from last week.
The average contract interest rate for 15-year fixed-rate mortgages decreased to 6.36% from 6.37%, with points decreasing to 0.69 from 0.74 (including the origination fee) for 80% LTV loans. The effective rate decreased from last week.
The average contract interest rate for 5/1 ARMs decreased to 6.07% from 6.44%, with points increasing to 0.64 from 0.62 (including the origination fee) for 80% LTV loans. The effective rate decreased from last week, MBA said.