U.S. mortgage rates rise to 7.5%, home purchase activity falls for sixth straight week.

U.S. mortgage rates continued to climb, suppressing home purchase activity for a sixth straight week. According to data released Wednesday by the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA), the contract rate on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage rose 1 basis point to 7.50% in the week ended Oct. 9, still the highest level since November 2023. Since the end of June, the rate has risen nearly 1 percentage point. The MBA's purchase index, a measure of loan applications, fell 4%, declining for a sixth consecutive week the longest streak of declines since July-August 2023. Before the recent surge in mortgage rates, home sales had shown signs of stabilizing. Data released Tuesday by the National Association of Realtors (NAR) showed a slight increase in existing-home purchases. But those figures are based on contract closings and largely reflect signings before the recent spike in borrowing costs. "Fourth-quarter home sales activity is clearly going to be lower, and perhaps even notably lower, due to higher rates," said Lawrence Yun, NAR's chief economist. Data released this week by real estate brokerage Redfin showed signed contracts fell 4% in September from the prior month. According to Redfin, that was the largest drop in more than three years. Meanwhile, NAR's refinancing index fell for an eighth straight week, to the lowest level since early 2025. The MBA survey has been conducted weekly since 1990 and covers mortgage bankers, commercial banks and thrift institutions. The data cover more than 75% of all U.S. retail residential mortgage applications.