Mortgage rates up, demand down by more than 10%

Applications for home loans fell last week as borrowing costs reached levels unseen since October 2025. The Mortgage Bankers Association reported a 10.5 percent week-over-week drop in overall requests for home loans, according to CNBC.

The average for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage varied across industry indexes. The MBA noted that borrowers putting down 20 percent faced an average interest rate of 6.43 percent, up from 6.30 percent. Freddie Mac separately recorded a jump to 6.22 percent from the previous week's 6.11 percent. The changes mark three weeks of increases in costs for home buyers.

While refinancing activity fell 15 percent over the last seven days, it maintained a 52 percent lead over the comparable period last year. Prospective buyers submitted five percent fewer purchase applications. Loans with variable interest rates represented 8.1 percent of the submission volume.

The pressure on borrowing costs stems from the war in the Middle East. Halted fuel shipments from Iran are driving up power prices and creating worldwide inflation anxiety, according to The New York Times. Uncertainty in the economy has maintained pressure on Treasury yields — a metric that influences mortgage rates.

Policymakers at the Federal Reserve did not change interest rates earlier this week. According to The Times, markets anticipate the central bank will wait over 12 months before lowering its benchmark rate. Increases in prices for fuel are raising construction costs for home builders, adding strain to the housing supply.

President Donald Trump took executive action late last week aimed at deregulating the housing market and expanding credit access for purchasers. He promised to veto legislation aimed at expanding the housing supply unless lawmakers add voter restrictions to the bill, according to The Times.