American real estate equities rose on Wednesday, buoyed by declining mortgage rates and a significant uptick in loan applications throughout the previous week.
According to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey released on Wednesday, mortgage applications in the US jumped 14.1% for the week ending January 16. The data revealed that the average contract interest rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage decreased slightly to 6.16%, down from 6.18% the week before.
The Market Composite Index — a metric tracking the total volume of mortgage loan applications — grew by 14.1% on a seasonally adjusted basis compared to the prior week. On an unadjusted basis, this index saw a 17% increase. Additionally, the seasonally adjusted Purchase Index rose 5% to 194.1, while the Refinance Index surged by 20%.
“Mortgage rates declined further last week, driving another big week for refinance applications, which saw the strongest level of activity since September 2025,” MBA’s Vice President and Deputy Chief Economist Joel Kan commented. “These lower rates prompted greater refinance activity from conventional and VA refinance borrowers, with increases of 29 percent and 26 percent, respectively. Refinance applications accounted for more than 60 percent of applications, and the average loan size also moved higher.”
Market Reaction
Market performance reflected this positive momentum, as the S&P 1500 Homebuilding Index climbed 1.5%. By 12:26 p.m. EST, several major homebuilder stocks posted gains: D.R. Horton Inc. rose 2.30%, Lennar Corp. increased 1.49%, PulteGroup Inc. gained 1.20%, and Toll Brothers Inc. jumped 2.07%. Invitation Homes Inc. and KB Home also traded higher, rising 1.03% and 0.95% respectively.
Beyond economic data, real estate stocks were further bolstered by comments from President Donald Trump at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. Asserting that the US would not become a nation of renters, Trump highlighted administrative efforts to tackle housing affordability.
“Home ownership has always been a symbol of health and vigor of American society but that goal fell out of reach for millions and millions of people in the Biden era because interest rates went up so high,” Trump said at the WEF.
The President praised an executive order signed on Tuesday intended to curb institutional home purchases. Although Trump described the move as a ban, the order does not immediately impose new regulations on large housing portfolios. Instead, it initiates a phased process: the Treasury Department has 30 days to define “large institutional investors” and “single-family homes.” Within 60 days, federal agencies will explore methods to block the insurance, guaranteeing, or securitization of home acquisitions by these large-scale entities.
“Hardworking young families cannot effectively compete for starter homes with Wall Street firms and their vast resources,” Trump said in the order. “Neighborhoods and communities once controlled by middle-class American families are now run by faraway corporate interests. People live in homes, not corporations.”
