LendingTree®, the nation's leading online loan marketplace, released its latest report on the recent growth in refinance applications compared to the same time period in 2019. The economic effects of the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic have led to unprecedented volatility in mortgage interest rates and an overwhelming surge of borrower demand. LendingTree data shows that refinance mortgage applications through LendingTree's marketplace tripled from a year ago in each of the 50 largest cities and in all but five states.

Key findings

San Francisco and Raleigh, N.C., lead cities with the most growth in refinance loan requests, which increased 417% and 406%, respectively.

There are four California cities in the top 10. San Jose, San Diego and Los Angeles saw refinance inquiries grow 394%, 360% and 345%, respectively, from last year.

Buffalo, N.Y., Louisville, Ky. And Memphis, Tenn. Lag the rest of the nation's metros in refinances. Borrowers in these three cities are taking the least advantage of this historic refinance opportunity, though they still show growth rates above 200%.

Nebraska had the fastest growth of all states. Applications were up 338%, leading the nine states with growth rates above 300%.

Five states underperform notably. With growth rates below 200%, borrowers in West Virginia, Mississippi, Kentucky, Arkansas and Alabama are missing out on an opportunity to significantly lower their mortgage payments.

Home-value appreciation and credit scores matter. When LendingTree compared states, it found correlations to refi-application growth of 0.37 for home-value appreciation growth over five years, and 0.57 for average homeowner credit scores.

"A mortgage refinance, particularly at these historically low rates, presents an attractive opportunity for homeowners amid economic uncertainty," said Tendayi Kapfidze, LendingTree's chief economist. "Compared to a year ago when rates were 1 percentage point higher, consumers save nearly $60 per month — or $700 per year in payments — for every $100,000 borrowed. Interest savings add up to about $20,000 over the 30-year term of a typical mortgage."

States and cities with higher average credit scores and greater home-price appreciation are better positioned to take advantage of the historic refinance opportunity. The improvement in the balance sheets of those households could potentially help some areas recover more robustly when the economic crisis induced by the coronavirus ends.