http://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/newsletter/n Mortgage Newsletters Archive https://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/newsletter/n/20260413 Mon, 13 Apr 2026 04:00:00 GMT Mon, 13 Apr 2026 04:00:00 GMT https://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/newsletter/n/20260413 Mortgage rates are based on movement in the bond market and although bonds experienced some volatility in response to Iran war news over the weekend, they ended up in similar territory to Friday morning. As such, it's no surprise to see mortgage rates in similar territory as well.  The average lender began the day 0.02% higher than Friday, but bonds improved during the day and some mortgage lenders were able to make small downward adjustments mid-day. This keep the average top-tier 30yr fixed rate just below 6.40% for the third straight day. From 5.99% in late February, rates spiked as high as 6.64% on March 27th. They've fallen noticeably but moderately since then, but the recent trajectory has been flattening out as the market waits to see how de-escalation may play out. Mortgage News Daily http://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/rss/newsletter https://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/newsletter/n/20260410 Fri, 10 Apr 2026 04:00:00 GMT Fri, 10 Apr 2026 04:00:00 GMT https://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/newsletter/n/20260410 Mortgage applications dipped again last week, though the pace of decline slowed considerably. The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) reported a 0.8% decrease on a seasonally adjusted basis for the week ending April 3. Refinance activity continued to weaken, with the Refinance Index falling 3% from the previous week and now sitting 4% below year-ago levels. The slowdown reflects a sharp drop in borrower incentive following the recent run-up in rates. Purchase activity showed modest resilience, with the seasonally adjusted Purchase Index rising 1% from the prior week. However, demand remains softer overall, with purchase applications down 7% compared to the same time last year—the first annual decline since early 2025. MBA’s Joel Kan said “higher mortgage rates Mortgage News Daily http://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/rss/newsletter https://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/newsletter/n/20260409 Thu, 09 Apr 2026 04:00:00 GMT Thu, 09 Apr 2026 04:00:00 GMT https://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/newsletter/n/20260409 Many borrowers will see no difference between yesterday and today's mortgage rate quotes. The average lender moved just a hair lower. Once again, the rate market is responding to war-related headlines and their impact on oil prices. Rates don't always care what oil prices are doing, but at present, there's more correlation than normal due to the inflation implications from a protracted conflict. Inflation is the true concern for bonds/rates when it comes to oil. Today's headlines involved various de-escalation anecdotes, mainly centering on Israel and Lebanon. Prior to those headlines, rates were set to match yesterday's levels. Afterward, the average lender was 0.02% lower for a top tier 30yr fixed rate. Mortgage News Daily http://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/rss/newsletter https://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/newsletter/n/20260408 Wed, 08 Apr 2026 04:00:00 GMT Wed, 08 Apr 2026 04:00:00 GMT https://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/newsletter/n/20260408 It's a fluid situation in financial markets on Wednesday. The 2-week ceasefire in the Iran war caused a big reaction last night, but the benefit to the bond market (bonds dictate rates) has been increasingly wiped out during domestic hours.  If we measure the reversal versus yesterday's closing levels at 5pm ET, the reversal is almost complete. But bonds were already rallying in the afternoon due to expectations for the official ceasefire news. All that to say, we're still in noticeably better shape than we were mid-day yesterday, but the overall improvement is smaller than most borrowers would expect. In fact, the average top-tier 30yr fixed rate is just barely at the low end of April's range at 6.40% vs the previous low of 6.41% on April 2nd. Earlier today, it was as low as 6.38%, Mortgage News Daily http://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/rss/newsletter https://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/newsletter/n/20260407 Tue, 07 Apr 2026 04:00:00 GMT Tue, 07 Apr 2026 04:00:00 GMT https://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/newsletter/n/20260407 In stark contrast to the entire month of March, April's mortgage rate volatility has been downright boring. To put this in context, the average top tier 30yr fixed rate rose a substantial 0.65% by March 27th. In the first five business days of April, they've held inside a range of just 0.04%. Today did nothing to expand that range although it did leave rates microscopically higher versus yesterday. The Iran war continues to be the dominant source of inspiration for the financial markets, including the bond market that underlies interest rates . Given that tonight brings a deadline for a potentially major escalation in the war, there's a risk of volatility heading into tomorrow. Mortgage News Daily http://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/rss/newsletter https://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/newsletter/n/20260406 Mon, 06 Apr 2026 04:00:00 GMT Mon, 06 Apr 2026 04:00:00 GMT https://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/newsletter/n/20260406 It was an uneventful day for mortgage rates with the average lender close enough to Friday's levels that borrowers would not see much of a difference between the two days. The bond market (which underlies and dictates rate movement) was still in quasi-holiday mode as most overseas markets were closed for holidays. Financial markets (including bonds) continue taking cues from major developments in the Iran war, but today ended up being more about waiting for those events based on Trump's deadline for Iran to reopen The Strait of Hormuz or face major escalation. Mortgage News Daily http://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/rss/newsletter https://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/newsletter/n/20260402 Thu, 02 Apr 2026 04:00:00 GMT Thu, 02 Apr 2026 04:00:00 GMT https://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/newsletter/n/20260402 On any given Thursday, there's a decent enough chance that the average mortgage rate headline will be unintentionally misleading. At issue is media reliance on the longstanding weekly mortgage rate surveys. If news stories are going to cite this data, that's fine, but it's critical to understand the methodology. Whether it's MBA (reported yesterday) or Freddie Mac (reported today), the weekly surveys have an inherent reporting lag--that is, they are published at least a day after data collection ends. In addition, they represent an average of 5 business days.  This means that the weekly mortgage rate would be reported as 6.2% if the first 4 days were 6.0% and the 5th day jumped to 7%.  This is most frustrating for consumers when the present moment's rates are higher than the weekly Mortgage News Daily http://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/rss/newsletter https://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/newsletter/n/20260401 Wed, 01 Apr 2026 04:00:00 GMT Wed, 01 Apr 2026 04:00:00 GMT https://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/newsletter/n/20260401 Mortgage applications fell  for the third consecutive week amid an increasingly volatile rate environment. The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) reported a decrease of 10.4% on a seasonally adjusted basis for the week ending March 27. The Refinance Index fell 17% from the previous week, but remains 33% higher than the same week one year ago. Purchase activity also declined, with the seasonally adjusted Purchase Index dropping 3% , just 1% above year-ago levels. MBA’s Mike Fratantoni notes "higher rates  are being offset somewhat by the buyer’s market in many parts of the country – there are more homes for sale than buyers have seen in some time. Moreover, purchase applications for FHA and VA loans continue to hold up better than those for conventional buyers. Mortgage News Daily http://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/rss/newsletter https://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/newsletter/n/20260331 Tue, 31 Mar 2026 04:00:00 GMT Tue, 31 Mar 2026 04:00:00 GMT https://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/newsletter/n/20260331 Mortgage rates moved lower for the second straight day as markets responded to potential de-escalation in the Iran war.  Rates are based on bonds and bonds improved overnight as The President said the war could end even if the Strait of Hormuz was not yet reopened. Additional improvement followed during domestic hours based on headlines that suggested Iranian officials were "ready to end the war." The market reaction might have been bigger had those claims not been contingent on Iran wanting "certain guarantees."  They also came from Iran's President and not the Supreme Leader. Still, stocks, bonds, and oil prices all responded. The bond market response involved additional improvement. As bonds improve, rates move lower.  The net effect for mortgage rates was a move back below Mortgage News Daily http://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/rss/newsletter https://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/newsletter/n/20260330 Mon, 30 Mar 2026 04:00:00 GMT Mon, 30 Mar 2026 04:00:00 GMT https://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/newsletter/n/20260330 The bad news is that the average top-tier 30yr fixed rate remains over 6.5% after being under 6% just a month ago. The good news is that rates recovered nicely over the weekend.  By Friday afternoon, the average rate was 6.64%--the highest since August 2025--adding to a trend of rapid upward movement over the course of March. While there's no way to know if a bigger picture corner has been turned, it's a victory in the short term. Notably, the underlying bond market broke from its typical correlation with oil prices today. The latter has experienced severe volatility due to the Iran war, and bonds have been affected due to inflation implications. It's too soon to determine if that's happening for temporary reasons relating to the calendar more than underlying events and economic fun Mortgage News Daily http://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/rss/newsletter