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An extra pulse of hopeful Boston-area homebuyers moved to lock in mortgage rates last month before going house-hunting, new data shows.

According to mortgage-data company Optimal Blue, total rate lock volume in Greater Boston increased 9.2 percent on a year-over-year basis, to $1.46 billion worth of potential mortgages.

That translates to a jump from 2,128 potential loans in June 2025 to 2,348 potential loans in 2026, a 10.3 percent year-over-year gain.

Along with the increase in prospective buyer activity, the rate and amount of these loans have declined. The average rate locked loan amount in Greater Boston was $623,579, a 1.1 percent decline year-over-year. Also, the average mortgage rate for those locks was 6.39 percent, which is down 28 basis points from June 2025.

It comes after a sluggish spring selling season that agents and brokers in Greater Boston blame on a combination of a harsh winter and fallout from the Trump administration’s attacks on Iran, which pushed up gas prices and inflation fears.

“June wasn’t defined by a single headline number. Purchase demand strengthened, refinance activity held up and pull-through improved after softening in May,” Optimal Blough Senior Vice President of Corporate Strategy Mike Vough said in a statement. “Together, those trends point to a market that is battle tested and that has adapted to a higher-for-longer rate environment.”

Nationally, total rate-lock volume rose 15 percent year over year. Purchase lock volume also increased by 14 percent year-over-year.  The average loan amount was $399K.

Optimal Blue also reported that non-conforming lending reached its highest national share in several years as conforming volume remained below 49 percent for the second consecutive month.

Boston Rate-Lock Volume Jumps in June

by Sam Lattof time to read: 1 min
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