Borrowers came in swarms last week to take advantage of another massive drop in mortgage rates. Mortgage application activity, which includes refinances and home purchases, surged 55.4% last week compared to the previous week, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s seasonally adjusted index. Volume was 192% higher year over year.

The bulk of the increase came from homeowners refinancing their mortgages into lower rates. Applications for refinances jumped 79% for the week and are 479% higher than a year ago, the MBA reports. That marks the highest level of refinancing since April 2009.

The MBA reports the average interest rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage was 3.47% last week, a rate that is 117 basis points lower than a year ago. Freddie Mac’s weekly mortgage market indicator had rates even lower and at an all-time low last week, averaging 3.29%.

“Taking into account the current economic situation and how much rates have fallen, the MBA is nearly doubling its 2020 refinance origination forecast to $1.2 trillion, a 37% increase from 2019 and the strongest refinance volume since 2012,” says Joel Kan, an MBA economist. “As lenders handle the wave in applications and manage capacity, mortgage rates will likely stabilize but remain low for now. This in turn will support borrowers looking to refinance or purchase a home this spring.”

Applications to purchase a home rose at a more subdued pace than refinancing applications, up 6% for the week. Applications are up 12% annually, the MBA reports.

Borrowers who are unable to make their monthly mortgage payments due to COVID-19, also known as the coronavirus, have options to postpone payments, according to a new statement released by the Federal Housing Finance Agency. FHFA Director Mark Calabria reminded mortgage servicers this week to offer forbearance options to those who are affected as the virus continues its spread through the U.S.

“To meet the needs of borrowers who may be impacted by the coronavirus, last week Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac reminded mortgage servicers that hardship forbearance is an option for borrowers who are unable to make their monthly mortgage payment,” Calabria said in a statement. “For borrowers that may be experiencing a hardship, I encourage you to reach out to your servicer.”

The Federal Housing Administration also announced mortgage payment assistance available to those impacted by the virus. “As with any other event that negatively impacts a borrower’s ability to pay their monthly mortgage payment, FHA’s suite of loss mitigation options provides solutions that mortgagees should offer to distressed borrowers—including those that could be impacted by the coronavirus—to help prevent them from going into foreclosure,” the FHA said in a statement.

Forbearance options are available not only to those sick from the virus but also owners who may be facing a temporary hardship from it, such as a borrower who is quarantined and unable to work.

Read more coronavirus and real estate coverage:

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• Fed Issues Emergency Rate Cut Amid Coronavirus Fears
• Retail Takes Hit from Nervous Shoppers
• Brokerage Touts Virtual Tours Amid Coronavirus Concerns
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With a severely limited supply of homes on the market and the lowest mortgage rates in history, house hunters should expect steep competition this spring. The new coronavirus remains a wild card for the housing market, but if the scare is short-lived, buyers are poised to swoop down in droves. “January has already been strong, with prices up, home sales up, and listings down quite a bit,” Daryl Fairweather, Redfin’s chief economist, told USA Today. “So home buyers are more likely to face competition.”

Inventory in January was the lowest it has been in more than two decades. At the end of the month, there were 1.42 million homes for sale, including condos, co-ops, and single-family homes. That is down 10.7% from a year earlier, according to data from the National Association of REALTORS®. However, buyer demand has remained high, which has put pressure on home prices. The median sales price for all housing types was $266,300, up 6.8% from a year ago, NAR’s housing data shows.

Coronavirus fears have rocked the stock market in recent weeks, and that may prompt some aspiring buyers to hold off on a purchase. But the stock market chaos also could make home prices rise. “There might be people looking to diversify into real estate instead of stocks,” Jason Gell, president of the Greater Boston Association of REALTORS®, told USA Today. “That can cut affordability for buyers.”

Lower interest rates could help. The Federal Reserve made an emergency rate cut last week to its short-term rate amid coronavirus concerns. The 10-year Treasury note, which influences mortgage rates, also has plummeted to record lows. The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage last week averaged 3.29%, the lowest on record, Freddie Mac reported. “We’re seeing lots and lots of people at open houses,” Gell says. “Interest rates are still extremely low so that the actual monthly payments are fairly affordable.”

A report released last week by realtor.com® also showed plunging national housing inventory. Twenty-five of the nation’s 50 largest metros saw their inventory decline by 20% or more. The largest drops were in Phoenix, San Diego, and San Jose, Calif., which saw decreases exceed 36% annually.

For buyers heading into the market: “Be patient,” says Jessica Lautz, vice president of demographics and behavioral insights at NAR. “You may have to bid on several properties before you beat out the competition for that home. That local REALTOR® will know how to sweeten the pot for that potential seller and make your offer the most attractive.”

The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage this week fell to its lowest average on record—3.29%—since Freddie Mac began tracking such data in 1971. And borrowers rushed to lock in.

Mortgage applications rose 10% last week compared to a year ago, says Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s chief economist. “Given these strong indicators in rates and sales, as well as recent increases in new construction, it’s clear the housing market continues to be a positive force for the broader economy,” he adds.

Freddie Mac reports the following national averages with mortgage rates for the week ending March 5:

• 30-year fixed-rate mortgages: averaged 3.29%, with an average 0.7 point, falling from last week’s 3.45% average. Last year at this time, 30-year rates averaged 4.41%.
• 15-year fixed-rate mortgages: averaged 2.79%, with an average 0.7 point, falling from last week’s 2.95% average. A year ago, 15-year rates averaged 3.83%.
• 5-year hybrid adjustable-rate mortgages: averaged 3.18%, with an average 0.2 point, falling from last week’s 3.20% average. A year ago, 5-year ARMs averaged 3.87%.

Some brokerages are already reporting a significant drop in demand from home buyers and home sellers as fears grow over a COVID-19 outbreak in the U.S. Glenn Kelman, CEO of Redfin, posted in a blog post on Wednesday that following the first U.S. death from the new coronavirus in Seattle, the firm has noticed a significant drop in buyer tours in some locales.

In response, Redfin has launched on-demand virtual home tours. Starting on Wednesday, home buyers can use a pushbutton tool at the brokerage’s site to ask the real estate agent to conduct the tour virtually via video chat. Before, that pushbutton tool was only used for requesting a private, in-person tour of homes for sale. Redfin has decided to give home shoppers the option of touring homes virtually in case they prefer to stay at home.

Kelman also said in the blog post that buyers can complete the contract virtually, if they choose, in states that allow it. They can close on a mortgage and title service electronically. “If you’d rather not meet others except where necessary, we can let you see a home, bid on it, and close on it, all virtually,” he writes.

The coronavirus has been having an impact on the real estate industry, making buyers skittish to tour homes or visit open houses and influencing mortgage rates.

Kelman said that agents in Seattle are working with sellers who are concerned about potential spread of the virus from people touring their homes. “Three canceled their listings, and at least one buyer canceled an offer,” he noted.

But in other areas of the country, agents have reported little disruption. In Portland, Ore., which had the first three confirmed cases of the virus in the U.S. last week, agents are reporting little change in customer behavior, except a few customers asking to meet agents in private rather than at a coffee shop.

Kelman says the brokerage has taken some extra precautions, such as advising its real estate professionals not to shake hands with customers who are concerned about having contact with new people. He says they’re also advising home sellers to have household cleaning spray and wipes available at private showings so that agents from other brokerages can use them after a tour. Redfin is also supplying its agents with wipes and cleaning materials to wipe down frequently touched objects.

Even on the photo-driven social network, Instagram, videos get better engagement than photos (with an average engagement rate for video posts at 1.87% compared to average engagement rate for photo posts at 1.11%).

Video posts earn the highest engagement of any other type of content on Facebook, and tweets with video get 10 times more engagement, the studies show.

YouTube—the popular medium for delivering video—has more than 2 billion users visiting every month and is the second most visited website after Google, which owns YouTube. Consumers watch 1 billion hours of YouTube every day, and 70% of that watching occurs over a mobile device. Further, visitors don’t just watch; they also engage. Seventy percent of YouTube users are engaging with creators and channels. What’s more, consumers are using video to influence their purchases. Eighty percent of consumers who watched a YouTube video said they did so early on as part of their buying journey.