The average 30-year mortgage in the U.S. fell by 25 basis points last week to 7.61%, its biggest decline in more than a year, Bloomberg reports.

This is the lowest level 30-year mortgages have been since the end of September, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association released Wednesday.

In step with this, mortgage applications for home purchases increased by 3% in the week ended Nov. 3.

This marks two weeks straight for long-term mortgages to decline, the first time for a back-to-back decline of this duration since mid-June.

“Looking ahead, we think that we’ve now seen the peak in mortgage rates and anticipate a steady decline over the next two years,” says Thomas Ryan, property economist at Capital Economics.

“Even so, we don’t expect them to fall below 6.0% before end-2025 — far higher than the 4.1% average of the 2010s decade,” Ryan adds. “That will keep affordability stretched and dampen any potential of a major recover in housing activity.”

Indeed, mortgage rates are uncomfortably high for most Americans, discouraging those who have locked in rates at 3% or 4% from moving. This is keeping inventory down and prices up.

The MBA survey is based on responses from mortgage bankers, commercial banks and thrift savings and loans, and is believed to cover more than three-fourths of all retail residential mortgages in the country.