Mortgage Rates Rise Again
Summary from the AllSides News Team
Mortgage rates are at their highest level in months as the spring home-buying season approaches.
The Details: The average interest rate on a 30-year mortgage loan rose to 6.94% from 6.9% this week, the highest point since December, according to Freddie Mac.
For Context: After hitting a 20-year high of 7.79% in October, mortgage rates fell slowly and remained around 6.6% for more than a month. They began to creep higher after the Federal Reserve said it wouldn't reduce its benchmark interest rate until later this year. A May 2023 study from LendingTree suggested that rising rates could cost homebuyers "an average of nearly $44,000" over the lifetime of their loans.
How the Media Covered It: Sources across the spectrum covered the news similarly. CNBC (Center bias) said that "as a result" of higher rates, "applications to refinance a home loan were 7% lower than the previous week and were 1% lower than the same week one year ago." Fox Business (Lean Right) noted that the average mortgage rate "remains sharply higher than the pandemic-era lows of just 3%." CNN Business (Lean Left) said the news "dampened already tentative homebuyer momentum heading into the spring."
Featured Coverage of this Story
From the Center
7% interest rates hit weekly mortgage demand hard
Higher mortgage rates continue to hit demand from both current homeowners and potential homebuyers.
Total mortgage application volume dropped 5.6% last week from the previous week, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association's seasonally adjusted index. An additional adjustment was made to account for the Presidents Day holiday.
The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances ($766,550 or less) decreased to 7.04% from 7.06%, with points increasing to 0.67 from 0.66 (including the origination fee) for loans with a 20% down payment. The rate was about...
From the Right
Mortgage rates are rising again. See how much money they're costing you
Mortgage rates jumped to the highest level in two months ahead of the pivotal spring home-buying season, throttling demand among would-be buyers.
Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday that the average rate on a 30-year loan this week rose to 6.94% from 6.9% — the highest level since mid-December. While that is down from a peak of 7.79% in the fall, it remains sharply higher than the pandemic-era lows of just 3%.
"Mortgage rates continued their ascent this week, reaching a two-month high and flirting with seven percent yet again,"...
From the Left
Mortgage rates edge closer to 7%, dampening start of spring homebuying season
Mortgage rates climbed for the fourth week in a row, inching closer to 7% just as peak homebuying season gets underway.
The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 6.94% in the week ending February 29, up from 6.90% the previous week, according to data from Freddie Mac released Thursday. A year ago, the average 30-year fixed-rate was 6.65%.
“Mortgage rates continued their ascent this week, reaching a two-month high and flirting with 7% yet again,” said Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s chief economist, in a statement.
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