Mortgage rates fall to lowest level since 2022

Mortgage rates dropped this week to the lowest level since September 2022, mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday.

Freddie Mac's latest Primary Mortgage Market Survey, released Thursday, showed the average rate on the benchmark 30-year fixed mortgage fell to 6.01% from last week's reading of 6.09%. 

The average rate on a 30-year loan was 6.85% a year ago.

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"This lower rate environment is not only improving affordability for prospective homebuyers, it’s also strengthening the financial position of homeowners," said Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s chief economist. "Over the past year, refinance application activity has more than doubled, enabling many recent buyers to reduce their annual mortgage payments by thousands of dollars."

The average rate on a 15-year fixed mortgage fell to 5.35% from last week's reading of 5.44%.

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Mortgage rates are affected by several factors, including the Federal Reserve and geopolitics. Though mortgage rates are not directly affected by the Fed's interest rate decisions, they closely track the 10-year Treasury yield. The 10-year yield hovered around 4.08% as of Thursday afternoon.

"This dip from 6.09% last week follows a notable slide in the 10-year Treasury yield, which hit its lowest point since late November 2025 after last week’s softer-than-expected CPI reading and a relatively optimistic jobs report," said Realtor.com senior economist Jake Krimmel.

Krimmel also said that the lower rates are setting the stage for the spring homebuying season.

"There is a chance to be nearly a full percentage point lower than that this spring, which would meaningfully boost purchasing power," he said. "However, the supply side remains mixed: new construction in 2025 finished behind 2024, and inventory growth has clearly lost steam."

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Krimmel noted, however, that if the mortgage "lock-in effect" doesn't ease, lower rates could reignite competition in the market and lead to a spike in prices.