Mortgage applications decreased 4.1% from one week earlier, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA)’s weekly mortgage applications survey for the week ending Sept. 11.
This week’s results include an adjustment for the Labor Day holiday. On an unadjusted basis, the index decreased 15% compared with the previous week.
The refinance index decreased 9% from the previous week and was 65% lower than the same week one year ago.
The seasonally adjusted purchase index decreased 1% from one week earlier. The unadjusted purchase index decreased 13% compared with the previous week and was 19% lower than the same week one year ago.
“Ongoing market concerns over spiking energy prices, persistently high inflation, and future monetary policy pushed bond yields and mortgage rates higher last week. As the 10-year Treasury inched closer to the 5% mark, mortgage rates followed and were almost at 7%. The 30-year fixed rate at 6.97% was at its highest level since May 2025,” Joel Kan, MBA’s vice president and deputy chief economist, said in a statement.
“After adjusting for the Labor Day holiday, purchase applications dipped relative to the week prior as higher mortgage rates caused many buyers to pause their purchase decisions. The current level of rates also eliminated much of the benefit to refinance for many borrowers, resulting in declines in conventional, FHA, and VA refinance applications,” he added.
The refinance share of mortgage activity decreased to 39.4% of total applications, down from 40.9% the previous week. The adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) share of activity decreased to 8.4% of total applications.
The Federal Housing Administration(FHA) share of total applications decreased to 16.9%, down from 17.2% the week prior, while the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs(VA) share increased 40 basis points to 12.4%. The U.S. Department of Agriculture(USDA) share decreased 10 bps to 0.4%.
The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances increased 12 bps to 6.97%, and rates for loans with jumbo balances increased 29 bps to 7.03%.
The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed mortgages backed by the FHA increased to 6.62%, up from 6.53%, and rates for 15-year fixed mortgages increased to 6.30%, up from 6.17%. The average rate for 5/1 ARMs increased to 6.23%, up from 5.82%.
Xactus Mortgage Intent Index
Xactus’sMortgage Intent Index— which analyzes aggregated, anonymized credit-pull activity across the Xactus Intelligent Verification Platform — dropped to a reading of 100.4, down 14.84% from the prior week.
“The Labor Day holiday, combined with elevated mortgage rates, created significant headwinds for mortgage intent this week, with the Xactus Mortgage Intent Index declining approximately 15% from the previous week,” said Thomas Lloyd,Xactus’s chief strategy officer.“Compared with the Labor Day holiday week last year, the index was down approximately 13.7%.”
Lloyd clarified that because the index isn’t seasonally adjusted, holiday timing can affect week-over-week comparisons.
“More notably, compared with the same week last year — which followed Labor Day rather than falling on the holiday itself — mortgage intent is down approximately 30%,” he added.