National Mortgage Professional Magazine reported today on its website that mortgage applications were up as interest rates fell for a fifth consecutive week.

The Mortgage Bankers Association’s Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey showed that the Market Composite Index — a measure of mortgage loan application volume — increased 14.6% on the week ending October 8. The Refinance Index increased 21.0% from the week before, while the seasonally adjusted Purchase Index decreased by 8.5% from the previous week. Applications for refinancing increased to 83.1% of total applications — the highest refinance share since January 2009. Last week, that figure was 78.9%.

The rise in applications could once again be attributed to the decrease in interest rates. The average rate for 30-year fixed-rate loans decreased to 4.21% from 4.25%, making it the lowest rate recorded in the survey. The average rate for 15-year mortgages dropped down from 3.73% to 3.62% — also a record low. One-year adjustable-rate mortgages also fell from 7.11% to 7.03%.

Another reason for the spike in applications was that those who were ready to buy a house wanted to beat the October 4 deadline; that was the day when stricter requirements for borrowers — such as higher credit scores and larger down payments on a home —went into effect.

Whether this rally will continue remains to be seen. There has been a call from federal legislators and state attorneys general to impose a moratorium on foreclosures until these alleged application processing errors are fixed. Many groups, including the MBA, the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA) and the Financial Services Roundtable, have expressed concerns that the moratorium will hurt the housing market and the economy, both of which they say are already in trouble.