Rate lock volume falls as rate-and-term refis crater in August
“After a sharp move higher in July, rates leveled off in August, but that pause didn’t translate into stronger volume,” said Brennan O’Connell, director of data solutions at Optimal Blue.
“Purchase activity is still running ahead of last year, but with rate-and-term refinance volume down 47%, there just isn’t much refinance demand to support the broader market. With rates still elevated and our 12-month forecast pointing to only gradual relief, the market remains highly sensitive to even modest changes in borrowing costs.”
The 12-month forecast places the OBMMI 30-year conforming rate at 6.51%, a thin relief for a refi channel that has already seen brokers pivot hard toward alternative products.
Equity products are increasingly filling the gap left by the dried-up refi market.
“If half of the refinance equity extraction in the market is being done through equity, then if you’re not offering it, you’re missing out,” Tom Davis, chief sales officer at Deephaven Mortgage, previously told Mortgage Professional America.
