Mortgage rates decreased for a second week as the average rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage fell to 6.74%, down from 6.88% last week, according to Freddie Mac’s Primary Mortgage Market Survey.
A year ago at this time, the average rate for a 30-year was 6.60%.
“The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage decreased again this week, with declines totaling almost a quarter of a percent in two weeks’ time,” says Sam Khater, chief economist for Freddie Mac, in a statement. “Despite the recent dip, mortgage rates remain high as the market contends with the pressure of sticky inflation. In this environment, there is a good possibility that rates will stay higher for a longer period of time.”
For the week ended March 14, the average rate for a 15-year fixed-rate mortgage was 6.16%, down from 6.22% the previous week but up from 5.90% a year ago.
Yesterday, the Mortgage Bankers Association reported that the recent dip in rates resulted in mortgage applications increasing 7.1% during the week ended March 8.
Photo: Bikram Sharma