Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX metro: mortgages and home buyers
2025 home-purchase and refinance statistics for the 10-county Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX area (OMB code 26420), from official HMDA records.
In 2025, lenders reported 73,503 home-purchase mortgages for owner-occupied, single-family homes in the Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX metro area. The median buyer borrowed $315,000 on a home valued at $345,000 and reported a household income of $121,000.
Buyers financed a median 95% of the home's value (roughly 5% down), paid a median 6.50% on 30-year fixed conventional loans and faced median conventional loan costs of $6,990.
Lenders denied 11.7% of completed home-purchase applications.
Key facts
- The median 30-year fixed conventional rate here was 13 basis points below the U.S. median (6.625%).
- Median conventional loan costs ($6,990) were 25% higher than the U.S. median ($5,570).
- FHA loans made up 33.5% of purchase mortgages, versus 21.1% nationally.
- 32.1% of buyers put at least 20% down (financed 80% or less), compared with 38.5% nationally.
- The most common age bracket among borrowers was 25–34 (31.9% of purchase loans).
- 56.4% of purchase mortgages had a single borrower with no co-applicant.
- The most-cited reason for denial was debt-to-income ratio (46.3% of denials with a stated reason).
Counties in the metro area
| County | Purchase loans | Median loan | Buyer income | 30-yr rate | Loan costs | Conforming limit | FHA limit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Harris County, TX | 36,460 | $305,000 | $118,000 | 6.500% | $7,000 | $832,750 | $541,287 |
| Montgomery County, TX | 12,790 | $295,000 | $120,000 | 6.500% | $6,950 | $832,750 | $541,287 |
| Fort Bend County, TX | 10,944 | $345,000 | $135,000 | 6.500% | $7,170 | $832,750 | $541,287 |
| Brazoria County, TX | 4,894 | $325,000 | $125,000 | 6.500% | $6,800 | $832,750 | $541,287 |
| Galveston County, TX | 4,348 | $305,000 | $123,000 | 6.500% | $6,630 | $832,750 | $541,287 |
| Waller County, TX | 1,672 | $305,000 | $110,000 | 6.450% | $7,180 | $832,750 | $541,287 |
| Chambers County, TX | 975 | $335,000 | $131,000 | 6.500% | $6,900 | $832,750 | $541,287 |
| Liberty County, TX | 977 | $285,000 | $108,000 | 6.500% | $7,130 | $832,750 | $541,287 |
| Austin County, TX | 253 | $305,000 | $127,000 | 6.625% | $8,140 | $832,750 | $541,287 |
| San Jacinto County, TX | 189 | $255,000 | $112,000 | 6.875% | $7,830 | $832,750 | $541,287 |
Who bought homes in Houston
Home-purchase mortgages for owner-occupied, single-family (1–4 unit) site-built homes, first liens, originated in 2025.
Values are medians; "middle half" is the 25th to 75th percentile.
Loan type
What the homes were for
All first-lien, closed-end purchase mortgages, including second homes and investors.
Borrower age
Debt-to-income ratio
Monthly debts (including the new payment) as a share of income, as used in underwriting.
What borrowing cost in Houston
Medians for 2025 home-purchase loans. Total loan costs are section D of the Loan Estimate/Closing Disclosure (lender and third-party loan charges, excluding taxes, prepaids and escrow). FHA and VA costs include the upfront mortgage insurance premium or VA funding fee, so compare like with like.
| Measure | Houston | U.S. |
|---|---|---|
| 30-year fixed rate · conventional | 6.500% | 6.625% |
| 30-year fixed rate · FHA | 5.875% | 6.250% |
| 30-year fixed rate · VA | 5.990% | 6.125% |
| 15-year fixed rate · conventional | 5.750% | 5.875% |
| Rate spread vs. APOR · conventional | +0.08 pts | +0.13 pts |
| Total loan costs · conventional | $6,990 | $5,570 |
| Total loan costs · FHA | $11,270 | $11,310 |
| Total loan costs · VA | $6,240 | $6,490 |
| Origination charges (all loan types) | $2,000 | $1,860 |
| Borrowers paying discount points | 61.7% | 51.3% |
| Points paid, when paid (% of loan) | 1.11% | 0.87% |
| Borrowers receiving lender credits | 31.3% | 33.1% |
| Adjustable-rate mortgages | 5.0% | 7.4% |
| Jumbo loans (above conforming limit) | 3.5% | 3.8% |
Medians are shown only when at least 30 loans report the field. Rates are those reported at closing; market rates changed during 2025, which the rate spread (APR minus the average prime offer rate on the lock date) adjusts for.
Approvals and denials
Houston: 10,044 of 85,982 completed home-purchase applications were denied (11.7%).
Denial rate
| Application | Houston | U.S. |
|---|---|---|
| Home purchase | 11.7% | 8.5% |
| Conventional | 9.6% | 7.1% |
| FHA | 14.9% | 12.5% |
| VA | 11.5% | 8.0% |
| USDA | 26.5% | 12.5% |
| Refinance | 28.7% | 17.9% |
| Cash-out refinance | 34.5% | 33.6% |
Main reason for purchase denials
First reason the lender reported.
Denial rate = denied ÷ (originated + approved but not accepted + denied). Withdrawn and incomplete applications are excluded. Differences between places reflect who applies, not only lender behavior.
Refinancing in Houston
Source: FFIEC/CFPB HMDA 2025 public LAR (derived MSA/MD); OMB July 2023 delineations via the U.S. Census Bureau. Methodology