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ICE Mortgage Monitor: Early-January Rate Decline Unlocks Refinance Opportunity for Nearly 5 Million Homeowners
ATLANTA & NEW YORK, February 09, 2026--Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. (NYSE: ICE), a leading global provider of technology and data, today released its February 2026 ICE Mortgage Monitor Report. According to the analysis, early January declines in mortgage rates unlocked refinance opportunities for nearly five million borrowers and helped push affordability to a four-year high.
About this update from Intercontinental Exchange Inc.
[{"type":"image","alt":"","displaySize":"","headline":null,"caption":"","credit":null,"className":"","disableSlideshowImg":false,"size":{"original":{"width":447,"height":439,"url":"https://media.zenfs.com/en/business-wire.com/cee02f9737bf190e43df88cb3ae32d98"},"resized":{"url":"https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/SS0Is3LL_WgStlCUMqHjrQ--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTcwNTtoPTY5MjtjZj13ZWJw/https://media.zenfs.com/en/business-wire.com/cee02f9737bf190e43df88cb3ae32d98","width":447,"height":439}},"lazy":false},{"type":"text","content":"Affordability reaches four-year high but remains structurally stretched as home price-to-income ratios remain elevated","length":118,"tagName":"p","attribs":{}},{"type":"text","content":"ATLANTA & NEW YORK, February 09, 2026--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. (NYSE: ICE), a leading global provider of technology and data, today released its February 2026 ICE Mortgage Monitor Report. According to the analysis, early January declines in mortgage rates unlocked refinance opportunities for nearly five million borrowers and helped push affordability to a four-year high.","length":402,"tagName":"p"},{"type":"text","content":""Even small reductions toward 6% rates can significantly boost affordability, particularly for homeowners who could refinance into a lower rate and monthly payments," said Andy Walden, Head of Mortgage and Housing Market Research at ICE. "When rates hit 6.04% on January 9, the number of homeowners in the money to refinance jumped by 20% and affordability hit its best level in four years. That said, affordability remains structurally challenged, with home prices still elevated relative to incomes and meaningful differences emerging across regions and borrower segments."","length":595,"tagName":"p"},{"type":"text","content":"Key findings from the February Mortgage Monitor include:","length":56,"tagName":"p"},{"type":"list","items":[{"val":[{"type":"text","content":"Refinance incentives surged to a nearly four-year high following early-January interest rate declinesOn January 9, interest rates reached 6.04%, according to the ICE 30-year conforming fixed rate index, which put roughly 4.8 million borrowers "in the money" for a refinance — the highest level since early 2022. That drop effectively increased the eligible population by 20% overnight. Although some of that benefit...