Spring purchase activity jumps despite climbing rates

Purchase activity soared to kick off the spring market this year as climbing rates didn't dampen momentum over last year's tepid start. 

Those mortgage locks in March were up 38% from February and 20% greater from the same time last year, according to Optimal Blue's latest Market Advantage Report. Home buyers accounting for 71% of total locks last month carried the market last month despite 30-year fixed-rate mortgages, which climbed 45 basis points in March to 6.35%.

"That's a strong sign for the spring market, especially with refinance share still at 28%, well above where it spent most of 2025," said Mike Vough, senior vice president of corporate strategy at Optimal Blue, in a press release Tuesday. 

Total rate lock volume rose 13% from February and 26% from last March, Optimal Blue reported. Adjustable-rate mortgages also accounted for 12% of total production last month, up 162 basis points from February and the highest share since October 2022. Those products have become more attractive, even with wavering rates, as buyers seek greater buying power in the high-priced market. 

Rate-and-term refinances meanwhile saw the biggest decline as monthly volume fell 34%, versus cash-out refi volume which ticked up 9% over the same period, according to Optimal Blue. Both products however remain well above last spring's levels, with rate-and-term and cash-out refis up 66% and 21% on an annual basis, respectively. 

Pull-through across the industry has shifted. The pull-through rate for purchase loans of 80% in March was down 84 basis points from February, and down 569 basis points since the beginning of the year, Optimal Blue reported. The refi pull-through rate of 75.1% meanwhile rose 157 basis points last month and has grown 588 basis points in the past three months.

Inside the numbers

The average loan amount inched down to $401,000 from $404,586 in February, while the average loan-to-value ratio was 81.32%, according to the report. Debt-to-income ratios meanwhile remained under year-ago levels, with the purchase DTI at 36.3% for conforming loans, and the DTI for Federal Housing Administration-backed loans at 43.3%.

In the non-qualified mortgage space, the share of bank statement loans has declined slightly in the past three months, although they still account for a third of that market, similar to the 32.3% share of investor and debt-service coverage ratio products. 

In March, mortgage servicing rights for conforming 30-year loans ticked up 6 basis points to 1.24%, representing a 4.97 multiple, Optimal Blue found. Lenders are also cashing out quicker, as hedged loan sales to the agency cash window rose 100 basis points last month to 28%. 

"We saw some movement toward the cash window in March, but the more telling signal was MSRs moving higher as refinance expectations came down," said Vough. "That's the market adjusting to a higher-rate backdrop."