The average rate on a 30-year U.S. mortgage slipped this week to its lowest level in 10 months, but remains close to where it’s been in recent weeks.
The long-term rate eased to 6.56% from 6.58% last week, mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday. A year ago, the rate averaged 6.35%.
Borrowing costs on 15-year fixed-rate mortgages, popular with homeowners refinancing their home loans, were unchanged from last week. The average rate held steady at 5.69%. A year ago, it was 5.51%, Freddie Mac said.
Elevated mortgage rates have added to a slump in the U.S. housing market that began in early 2022, when rates began climbing from pandemic lows.
For much of the year, the average rate on a 30-year mortgage has hovered relatively close to its 2025 high of just above 7%, set in mid-January. It has mostly trended lower six weeks in a row and is now at the lowest level since Oct. 24, when it averaged 6.54%.
The recent downward trend in mortgage rates bodes well for prospective homebuyers who have been held back by stubbornly high home financing costs. But it has yet to translate into a turnaround for home sales, which have remained sluggish this year after sinking in 2024 to their lowest level in nearly 30 years.
Economists generally expect the average rate on a 30-year mortgage to remain near the mid-6% range this year.
