Mortgage Applications Decrease in Latest MBA Weekly Survey

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Mortgage applications decreased 10.5% from one week earlier, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending March 20, 2026. 

The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, decreased 10.5% on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier. On an unadjusted basis, the Index decreased 10% compared with the previous week. The Refinance Index decreased 15% from the previous week and was 52% higher than the same week one year ago. The seasonally adjusted Purchase Index decreased 5% from one week earlier. The unadjusted Purchase Index decreased 5% compared with the previous week and was 5% higher than the same week one year ago.

“The threat of higher for longer oil prices continued to keep Treasury yields elevated, and mortgage rates finished last week higher. The 30-year fixed rate rose to 6.43%, more than 30 basis points higher than at the end of February and at its highest level since October 2025,” said Joel Kan, MBA’s Vice President and Deputy Chief Economist. “Given this period of increasing mortgage rates and diminishing refinance incentives, refinance applications decreased 15% as applications across all loan types declined. Purchase applications were also down last week, as higher mortgage rates, coupled with affordability constraints and economic uncertainty, pushed some potential homebuyers to the sidelines.

The refinance share of mortgage activity decreased to 49.6% of total applications from 52.3% the previous week. The adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) share of activity increased to 8.1% of total applications.

The FHA share of total applications increased to 19.7% from 19.4% the week prior. The VA share of total applications decreased to 15.9% from 16.7% the week prior. The USDA share of total applications increased to 0.5% from 0.4% the week prior.

The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances ($832,750 or less) increased to 6.43% from 6.3%, with points increasing to 0.65 from 0.63 (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 $832,750) increased to 6.45% from 6.39%, with points increasing to 0.56 from 0.34 (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 6.15% from 6.08%,with points increasing to 0.75 from 0.70 (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 5.83% from 5.66%, with points increasing to 0.80 from 0.73 (including the origination fee) for 80% LTV loans. The effective rate increased from last week.

The average contract interest rate for 5/1 ARMs increased to 5.75% from 5.65%, with points increasing to 0.68 from 0.67 (including the origination fee) for 80% LTV loans.  The effective rate increased from last week.

If you would like to purchase a subscription of MBA’s Weekly Applications Survey, please visit www.mba.org/WeeklyApps, contact mbaresearch@mba.org or click here.

The survey covers U.S. closed-end residential mortgage applications originated through retail and consumer direct channels.  The survey has been conducted weekly since 1990. Respondents include mortgage bankers, commercial banks, thrifts, and credit unions. Base period and value for all indexes is March 16, 1990=100.