MBA 30-Year Mortgage Rate

The MBA 30-Year Mortgage Rate is the headline line of the Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey, a weekly poll by the Mortgage Bankers Association. It reports the average contract rate, the quoted interest rate before fees, for 30-year loans with conforming balances, loans at or below the size cap.

Quotes are standardized to 80% loan-to-value, the loan amount divided by home value, with points, upfront fees including origination charges, stated separately. It covers over 75% of retail applications from mortgage bankers, commercial banks, thrifts and credit unions, not closed loans or government data. It measures contract rates quoted on applications in the survey week, not transaction prices.

Responses cover each survey week, and the association publishes results on a fixed morning each week. In holiday weeks when offices close, the association shifts the day or combines weeks into a joint release, and weekly figures stay final.

Each release shows average rate lines with points plus the effective-rate direction, the all-in cost signal, alongside application indexes and share data. Indexes track application volume for the total market, purchases and refinances, while shares split refinances, adjustable-rate loans, and government FHA, VA and USDA volumes. Analysts read levels and changes with no official target band, and the size cap defining the headline series is revised over time.

Each rate line captures a different borrower segment, so segments can move together or split.

• 30-year conforming: captures mainstream prime-borrower pricing at or below the size cap.

• 30-year jumbo: captures large-loan pricing above the cap, which can diverge on points.

• 30-year FHA-backed: captures government-insured borrower pricing, often lower rates with higher points.

• 15-year fixed: captures shorter-term fixed pricing.

• 5/1 ARM: captures adjustable-rate pricing, fixed for five years then adjusting yearly, whose share rises when fixed rates spike.

• Shares and indexes: capture volume and mix shifts across refinance, adjustable-rate and government loan shares.

• Quotes: During the survey week lenders report contract rates and points, including origination fees, quoted for 80% loan-to-value loans in each loan type.

• Points: Points are stated with each rate including origination fees for the same standardized loans.

• Average: The association averages the quotes.

For example, quotes of 7.86%, 7.90%, 7.92% and 7.92% average to 7.90%. That is 20 basis points above 7.70%, with points at 0.77 including origination fees.

• Effective rate: The association also states whether the effective all-in cost rose or fell but publishes no formula, weights or seasonal method.