Home Purchase Applications Increased 6% Last Week, Despite Higher Rates

WASHINGTON— Mortgage applications increased 0.6% from one week earlier, while purchase applications rose sharply during the same period, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ended Nov. 7, 2025.

The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, increased 0.6% on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier. On an unadjusted basis, the Index decreased 1% compared with the previous week. The Refinance Index decreased 3% from the previous week and was 147% higher than the same week one year ago. The seasonally adjusted Purchase Index increased 6% from one week earlier. The unadjusted Purchase Index increased 3% compared with the previous week and was 31% higher than the same week one year ago.

“Purchase applications picked up almost 6% over the week to the strongest pace since September, despite mortgage rates increasing slightly, with the 30-year fixed rate rising to 6.34%,” said Joel Kan, MBA’s Vice President and Deputy Chief Economist. “Purchase applications for conventional, FHA, and VA loans increased, as potential homebuyers continue to shop around, particularly in markets where inventory has increased and sales price growth has slowed. Based on the unadjusted purchase index for the week, this was the strongest start to November since 2022.”

Added Kan, “Higher mortgage rates did quell some refinance activity, as conventional and VA refinance applications declined over the week, and the average loan size for refinances dropped to its lowest level in over a month.”

The refinance share of mortgage activity decreased to 55.6% of total applications from 57.0% the previous week. The adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) share of activity decreased to 7.8% of total applications.

The FHA share of total applications increased to 19.4% from 18.5% the week prior. The VA share of total applications decreased to 14.8% from 14.9% the week prior. The USDA share of total applications decreased to 0.2% from 0.3% the week prior.

The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances ($806,500 or less) increased to 6.34% from 6.31%, with points increasing to 0.62 from 0.58 (including the origination fee) for 80% loan-to-value ratio (LTV) loans. The effective rate increased from last week.

The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with jumbo loan balances (greater than $806,500) increased to 6.46% from 6.43%, with points increasing to 0.38 from 0.33 (including the origination fee) for 80% LTV loans. The effective rate increased from last week.

The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages backed by the FHA increased to 6.14% from 6.13%, with points increasing to 0.76 from 0.73 (including the origination fee) for 80% LTV loans. The effective rate increased from last week.

The average contract interest rate for 15-year fixed-rate mortgages increased to 5.70% from 5.65%, with points increasing to 0.64 from 0.61 (including the origination fee) for 80% LTV loans. The effective rate increased from last week.

The average contract interest rate for 5/1 ARMs decreased to 5.50% from 5.56%, with points decreasing to 0.85 from 0.86 (including the origination fee) for 80% LTV loans. The effective rate decreased from last week.