Homeowners are asking a different question this fall. Not whether to swap out the mortgage they already have, but how to borrow against the house without touching it.
Chart: RateZip · Source: lender-posted rates tracked daily by RateZip.
Refinance requests shrank to 2% of the mortgage inquiries submitted across RateZip's network over the three months through August 2026, down from 39% in the same months a year earlier, according to RateZip's Mortgage Demand Index. Home-equity products, HELOCs plus reverse mortgages, took 76% of the mix, up from 43%. Overall inquiry volume in August ran 11% above July and 157% above August 2025.
The national picture points the same direction. The MBA's weekly survey showed its refinance index down 1% for the week ending Aug. 28 and about 19% below a year earlier, while purchase applications rose 2% week over week, according to Scotsman Guide. The refinance share of applications slipped to 41.8%, RISMedia reported, and the ARM share rose to 8%, its highest in five weeks.
Rates keep drifting higher
Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey put the average 30-year fixed rate at 6.66% in the week ending August 27, up from 6.65% a week earlier. The 10-year Treasury yield, the benchmark long-term mortgage pricing most closely tracks, closed at 4.79% on Tuesday, September 1, per FRED, up 15 basis points over the past week. The MBA's chief economist attributed higher borrowing costs to investor concern about inflation and deficits, RISMedia reported.
Posted rates moved again Thursday. U.S. Bank raised its 7/6 ARM to 6.5%, its fourth increase in the past three weeks; the ARM is up 0.375 points over that stretch. U.S. Bank also lifted its 15-year fixed to 6.25%, and AmeriSave moved its 15-year fixed to 4.875%. No lender in RateZip's tracked set changed its posted 30-year rate, and the gap between the cheapest and most expensive stands at 1.125 points, AmeriSave at 5.75% versus Rocket Mortgage at 6.875%, worth about $293 a month on a $400,000 loan. For those looking at a second lien, FourLeaf Federal Credit Union posts a HELOC at 6.75%.
What borrowers are asking for
"Recently, borrowers have started asking about short fixed-term equity products, like a 10- or 15-year HELOAN. There has been more hesitation in home buyers who haven't signed a contract, as the Fed signals rate cuts are very unlikely. The volume of folks who want to tap their equity with a 2nd mortgage continues to increase week over week," said Paul Knag, RateZip's founder.
LeeAnn Reynolds, a licensed loan originator at RateZip, hears the same thing on the phone. "The most common question I get is 'Is my credit OK for a HELOC?' Rates have been drifting up with no hope of dropping — this is causing people to give up. It's surprising how many people want shorter fixed terms and don't want the traditional interest-only product."
Buyers have more to choose from
For buyers still in the market, supply is building. Redfin reported new listings rose 2.1% week over week in the four weeks ending Aug. 30 to a four-year high, while pending sales were roughly flat at their lowest level since February, according to Redfin via PR Newswire.
"Sellers may start to get more desperate in September and subsequent months when mortgage rates are likely to remain higher than they were at this time in 2025," said Jake Krimmel, senior economist at Realtor.com, in a statement.
Today's posted rates: the full table
| Lender | 30-Yr | 15-Yr | 20-Yr | FHA 30-Yr | VA 30-Yr | Jumbo 30-Yr | 7/6 ARM | HELOC |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AmeriSave | 5.75% / 6.242% | 4.875% / 5.68% (+0.125) | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| New American Funding | 6.625% / 6.74% | 6.125% / 6.316% | — | 6.25% / 7.287% | 6.25% / 6.681% | — | — | — |
| Rocket Mortgage | 6.875% / 7.167% | 6.125% / 6.564% | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Wells Fargo | 6.75% / 6.896% | 6% / 6.252% | — | — | 6.125% / 6.364% | — | 6.375% / 6.542% | — |
| U.S. Bank | 6.75% / 6.923% | 6.25% / 6.49% (+0.125) | 6.49% / 6.717% | 6.625% / 7.526% | 6.5% / 6.863% | 7% / 7.18% | 6.5% / 6.617% (+0.25) | — |
| Bank of America | 6.875% / 7.118% | 6.125% / 6.486% | 6.75% / 7.071% | — | — | — | 6.25% / 6.524% | — |
| Veterans United | — | — | — | — | 5.99% / 6.459% | — | — | — |
| FourLeaf Federal Credit Union | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 6.75% / 6.75% |
Rates are each lender's own published rate as of 9:50 a.m. ET, collected from their public rate pages and feeds. The APR is the better cross-lender comparison; a figure in parentheses is today's change; a '—' means the lender doesn't post that product. How we collect and publish this: our rate methodology.
Source: Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey via FRED®, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis.