Mortgage application activity decreased month-over-month as the 30-year fixed mortgage rate rose. The Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Market Composite Index, a measure of total mortgage application volume, declined 12.4% month-over-month in April on a seasonally adjusted basis. However, overall activity remained 14.2% higher than a year earlier. Applications for adjustable-rate mortgages (ARM) also fell 12.4% month-over-month, while the ARM share of total applications was unchanged at 8.3%.
The average contract rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage increased four basis points (bps) to 6.41% as the conflict in Iran pushed yields higher. Nonetheless, the rate remained 39 bps lower than its level a year ago. Refinance applications fell sharply by 23.5% from March, while purchase applications held steady. Relative to April 2025, refinance and purchase activities were up 24.5% and 5.7%, respectively.
By loan type, applications for both adjustable-rate mortgages (ARMs) and fixed-rate mortgages (FRMs) decreased approximately 12.4% month-over-month. On a year-over-year basis, FRM applications were up 13.9%, while ARM applications rose 13.2%. As of April 2026, ARMs applications, including both purchase and refinance loans, accounted for 8.3% of total applications on a non-seasonally adjusted basis, unchanged from the prior month and a year earlier. The average contract interest rate for 5/1 ARMs was 5.6% in April.
Loan sizes declined across all categories except purchase loans in April, edging the overall average loan size down 0.9% to $397,800. The average purchase loan size increased marginally by 0.9% to $454,800, while the average refinance loan size fell 7.1% to $326,000. The average ARM loan size declined 1.1% to $919,500.
