30-year fixed mortgage rate saw biggest weekly decline since 2020

A decline in the rate on a 30-year mortgage had a positive effect on several areas of the real estate market in the past week.

"The 30-year fixed rate saw the largest weekly decline since 2020, falling 31 basis points to 5.43%," said Joel Kan, MBA’s associate vice president of economic and industry forecasting. "The drop in rates led to increases in both refinance and purchase applications, but compared to a year ago, activity is still depressed." 

The mortgage rate fell from 5.74%.

That move set off a domino effect with the refinance...