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While purchase activity is stalling across the state and the nation, but much of Massachusetts counties still saw significant gains in loans to homebuyers.
Barnstable County saw a 25.2 percent growth in the number of home-purchase mortgage originations, according to data from The Warren Group, publisher of Banker & Tradesman. Lenders made 1,270 purchase mortgages on residential property types in the first quarter, including single-family homes and condominiums.
Middlesex County saw the largest growth: Lenders made 5,595 residential purchase loans, a 42.4 percent increase year-over-year, according to The Warren Group.
Six counties saw year-over-year increases greater than 20 percent. Along with Barnstable and Middlesex County, Suffolk County saw a 23 percent increase, Plymouth County saw a 34.6 percent increase, Norfolk County saw a 34.2 percent increase, and Essex County saw a 35.9 percent increase. The smallest level of growth was in Berkshire County with year-over-year gains of just 0.9 percent.
Across the country, purchase loans fell 19 percent from the previous quarter to 581,261, marking the lowest quarterly total since the first quarter of 2014, according to real estate data company Attom. Purchase lending totaled $236.8 billion in the first quarter, an eight percent drop year-over-year, the company’s most recent data shows.
“Purchase, refinancing and home-equity lending all posted declines from the previous quarter, continuing a seasonal trend we’ve seen during the start of the year over the past four years,” Attom CEO Rob Barber said in a statement. “However, purchase activity stood out with home-buying loans falling to a 12-year low, as elevated home prices and higher mortgage rates continued to strain affordability for many buyers.”
Purchase loans also accounted for 37 percent of all residential mortgage originations nationwide, down from 40 percent in the fourth quarter and 44 percent on a year-over-year basis. Home equity lines of credit lending also slowed, with 272,156 loans originated during the first quarter according to ATTOM. This represents a12 percent drop from the prior quarter but up 4 percent year-over-year.
ATTOM attributes the slowdown to the rise in mortgage interest rates. According to Freddie Mac, the average rate on a 30-year fixed mortgage rose from 6.15 percent at the start of 2026 to 6.46 percent in April. That figure ended last week at 6.53 percent.
