Figures from the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) found the number of applications during the last week in April was 4.6% down on the week before.

Higher interest rates were to blame for the slowdown, with the remortgage side of the market dropping 8% week-to-week.

Refinancing loans now accounts for 53% of total applications, a figure which has fallen from 80% at the height of the financial crisis.

Matthew Graham of Mortgage News Daily said the slowdown had not hit the market as heavily as on past occasions.

“While rates do eventually create downward pressure on purchase demand, it’s not nearly as immediate or pronounced as the effect on refinance activity,” he said.

“Additionally, rate spikes tend to motivate fence-sitters, or other prospective buyers, who otherwise might have taken more time shopping around.”

A typical 30-year mortgage in the US has a rate of 3.93% at the end of April, up from 3.85%.