The 5 Cities Where Homeowners Are Taking Advantage of Lower Mortgage Rates

Homeowners are choosing to refinance home loans as mortgage rates dipped to 6.76%.

The number of residential refinance mortgages issued by lenders climbed to 641,918, according to a recent ATTOM report. That number is up from 603,324 in the prior three-month period.

Overall, 1.64 million mortgages secured by residential properties were issued in the fourth quarter alone.

ATTOM, a leading curator of land, property data, and real estate analytics, states “refinancing activity has gradually increased over the past two years following a spike in interest rates in 2021 and 2022 that caused mortgage rollovers to slump more than 80%.”

“The inboxes of mortgage lenders emptied out a bit during the fall of 2024 following a couple of strong quarters that had pointed to a possible revival for the industry,” says Rob Barber, ATTOM CEO.

“One small surprise emerged, with refinancing increasing again despite rising interest rates. That may have happened because rates started the quarter at one of the more attractive points over the past few years, suggesting that homeowners were trying to get their mortgages reset before borrowing costs went back up.”

The recent mortgage rate inched down to 6.76%—its lowest level since December 2024.

“Refinancing your mortgage is beneficial if you can get a rate lower than your current rate. Lowering the rate on the remainder of your mortgage loan can yield significant savings on interest payments over time,” explains Realtor.com® senior economic research analyst Hannah Jones.

ATTOM’s report compared refinance loan data from the third to the fourth quarter of 2024 and found five cities with the largest quarterly increases in home loan refinancing.

1. Hilton Head, SC

• Refinance loans up 56.4%

Realtor.com data shows the median home list price in Hilton Head at $629,000. There are 839 active listings, spending a median of 80 days on the market.

2. Wilmington, NC

• Refinance loans up 48.9%

Homes in Wilmington have a median list price of $465,000. There are 1,357 active listings, with homes spending a median of 72 days on the market.

3. San Jose, CA

• Refinance loans up 43.8%

In San Jose, the median home list price is $1.18 million. Currently, there are 1,186 active listings on Realtor.com, with homes spending a median of 21 days on the market.

4. Buffalo, NY

• Refinance loans up 41.9%

The median home list price in Buffalo is $212,000. Realtor.com has 1,419 listings for that city, with homes spending a median of 52 days on the market.

5. San Francisco, CA

• Refinance loans up 35.4%

In San Francisco, the median home list price is $1.1 million. There are 1,435 active listings on Realtor.com, with homes spending a median of 73 days on the market.

What to consider when refinancing

Americans carried $12.11 trillion in mortgage debt in 2024, according to Experian.

When it comes to refinancing, you need to make sure it works for your bottom line and what your monthly payments will be—higher or lower.

“Recent data shows that 83% of outstanding mortgages have a rate below 6%. With mortgage rates near 7%, this means that it would not be beneficial to refinance for most mortgage holders,” states Jones.

Jones points out that mortgage rates peaked near 8% in October 2023, but have since fallen to the high-6% range—and that may present an opportunity.

“Most outstanding mortgages have a rate well below today’s level, but for homeowners who bought when rates were above 7%, today’s level could offer lower mortgage payments,” says Jones.