30-year Mortgage rates in the US have fallen to 6.19%, the lowest level in over a year, mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday. It is the third straight weekly decline, bringing the average rate to its lowest level since Oct. 3, 2024. Borrowing costs on 15-year fixed-rate mortgages, popular with homeowners refinancing their home loans, also eased this week. The average rate dropped to 5.44% from 5.52% last week. A year ago, it was 5.71%,
“Mortgage rates continued to trend down this week, hitting their lowest level in over a year,” said Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s Chief Economist. “At the start of 2025, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage surpassed 7%, while today it hovers nearly a full percentage point lower. This dynamic has kept refinancings high, accounting for more than half of all mortgage activity for the sixth consecutive week.”
The rates have fallen in previous weeks, likely influenced by a change in the Fed’s tone on interest rates. With one rate cut already last month, there are expectations for at least one more cut before 2025 ends. Should another cut come at the next Fed meeting, US mortgage rates could continue to decline. Furthermore, Home borrowing rates are falling as markets see an October rate cut by the Federal Reserve as a “near certainty,” said Kara Ng, a senior economist at Zillow Home Loans.
“With signs of softer economic momentum and a deteriorating labor market, mortgage rates may drift slightly lower through 2026,” Ng said. “Still, Zillow expects the 30-year fixed rate to remain confined within the 6%–7% range observed in recent years.”
Even with house loan rates falling, affordability gains may be limited, said Lisa Sturtevant, chief economist at Bright MLS, last month. “For real affordability gains, we need to see both a drop in mortgage rates and much slower price growth, or even home price declines,” she said. Sturtevant added that a drop below 6.5% in rates may have “an important psychological effect” on buyers, enticing them back into the market.