In an aerial view, two-story single family homes line the streets of a neighborhood on Sept. 23, 2026 in Thousand Oaks, California.

Kevin Carter | Getty Images

Mortgage rates fell for the second straight week, and that finally brought consumers back to their brokers. A growing share, however, applied for riskier loans at even lower rates.

Total mortgage application volume rose 3.4% last week compared with the previous week, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association's seasonally adjusted index.

The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances, $832,750 or less, decreased to 7.37% from 7.41%, with points increasing to 0.76 from 0.75, including the origination fee, for loans with a 20% down payment.

"The decline in rates gave borrowers some relief, with applications rebounding slightly, particularly conventional applications," said Joel Kan, vice president and deputy chief economist at the MBA, in a release.…