Purchase mortgage applications for newly built homes increased on an annual basis in June, though declined from May levels in manner the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) described Thursday as “consistent” with sales patterns in the early summer.

According to the MBA’s Builder Application Survey, which tracks application volumes from mortgage subsidiaries of U.S. home builders, new-home mortgage application volumes were ultimately 2.4% higher than a year ago and 6% lower than May.

“Applications to purchase new homes continued to run stronger than last year’s pace,” noted Joel Kan, deputy chief economist at the MBA, commenting on the updated figures in the report.

Amid elevated uncertainty and deteriorating mortgage affordability linked to the Iran war that began in late February, new-home mortgage applications had posted their first annual decline since October in April, but rebounded above year-ago levels in May.

By product type, applications for conventional mortgage loans that satisfy Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac underwriting guidelines accounted for almost 51% of overall new-home application activity last month.

Meanwhile, applications for Federal Housing Administration-insured loans comprised more than 34% of overall activity and applications for mortgages backed by the Department of Veterans Affairs made up almost 14%. Government loans have comprised a larger share of new-home mortgages in 2026 amid slow buyer demand.

The continued use of aggressive sales incentives from home builders contributed to a three-month high in new-home sales in June, according to initial estimates from the MBA, which the trade group publishes in advance of official government figures.

New single-family home sales were reportedly running at a seasonally adjusted annual pace of roughly 667,000 units in June, according to the MBA, reflecting a nearly 4% increase from the May.

On an unadjusted basis, however, the MBA says there were about 3.4% fewer overall new homes sold last month, with 56,000 sales in June compared to 58,000 in May.

Government data from the U.S. Census Bureau and Department of Housing and Urban Development indicate that new-home sales plunged 6.8% from year-ago levels during May. Updated government estimates for June are scheduled for release on July 24.

The average loan amount for new homes rose to $375,218 in June from $372,825 in May, the MBA also reported on Thursday.