01/21/2026
SELLERS: TIME TO LIST... before your market cools....🥶
Home refinance activity jumps to highest pace in months
Application index records second straight week of double-digit growth....
By Moira Ritter
January 21, 2026
7:00 AM ET
The mortgage market posted another strong week as rates hovered near 6% and borrowers moved to refinance their loans.
Mortgage applications increased 14.1% in the week ended Jan. 16 compared to a week earlier, according to data released by the Mortgage Bankers Association on Wednesday. It's the second week of double-digit demand growth as borrowers have moved to take advantage of mortgage rates hovering near years-long lows.
A surge in refinances drove this week's overall increase. The MBA reported a 20% increase in refinances from the previous week and a 183% jump in refinances compared to the same week a year earlier.
"Mortgage rates declined further last week, driving another big week for refinance applications, which saw the strongest level of activity since September 2025," Joel Kan, the association's vice president and deputy chief economist, said in a statement. "Lower rates prompted greater refinance activity from conventional and VA refinance borrowers...Refinance applications accounted for more than 60% of applications, and the average loan size also moved higher.”
Purchase applications also got a boost from the lower mortgage rates, rising 12% on an unadjusted weekly basis and 18% on an unadjusted annual basis.
The latest data from mortgage giant Freddie Mac, released Thursday, had the average 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage at 6.06%, the lowest rate in more than three years. On a daily basis, though, mortgage rates had already moved higher by Tuesday afternoon, with Mortgage News Daily reporting a 6.21% 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage.
