The volume of total mortgage rate locks fell 9% in May from a month earlier, as high rates cooled both refinance and purchase transactions, according to data from Optimal Blue in its May 2026 Market Advantage report.
Tuesday’s report showed lock volumes are still 7% higher year over year, with purchase loans accounting for more than 81% of the share. Refinance loans fell to their lowest point since June 2025.
Significantly, purchase pull-through rates declined by 539 basis points month over month, while refinance pull-throughs fell by 1,332 bps. Pull-through rates describe the number of locked loans that eventually close.
Mike Vough, Optimal Blue’s senior vice president of corporate strategy, observed that at this point in the year, borrowers don’t have as much room to absorb changes in rates, costs or qualification requirements between lock and close.
“More than four out of five mortgage locks were tied to purchase transactions in May, but the more notable shift may be what happened after borrowers locked,” Vough said. “Pull-through rates declined across both purchase and refinance pipelines, which tells us borrowers are closely monitoring changes in the rate market.”
Along with purchase and refinance volumes declining, the share of conforming loans also fell to just under 49% of the total lock volume in May. April was the first time it had fallen below 50%.
Data from the report showed the share of Federal Housing Administration loans increased to 19% of total rate locks; non-conforming loans not eligible for purchase by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac rose to 19%; Department of Veterans Affairs loans declined to 13%; and mortgages backed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture held at 1%.
Optimal Blue also looked at secondary market activity in its report, which “reflected shifting execution preferences in May.”
Agency mortgage-backed securities decreased to 41% of funded loans, the report stated, “while cash executions increased to 32%. Mortgage servicing rights for conforming 30-year loans increased seven basis points to 1.36%.
