Mortgage rates hit the brakes

Mortgage rates hold steady after monthslon g rise

Mortgage rates held steady this week , a reprieve after months of increases, according to new data from Freddie Mac.

The average 30-year fixed mortgage rate was 7.4 percent this week , exactly where it stood last week . The average 30-year mortgage had previously risen for seven consecutive weeks, Freddie Mac reported.

Mortgage rates have risen throughout the last seven months, amid higher oil prices sparked by the Iran war and a sell-off in the bond market. The average 30-year mortgage rate was 5.98 percent the week before the U.S. and Israel launched the conflict.

The 10-year U.S. Treasury bond yield, which the 30-year mortgage rate closely tracks, has dipped down by roughly 16 basis points since Tuesday’s opening bell. The 10-year bond yield was trading at a 24-year high last week.

This week’s slowdown in mortgage rates was not limited to the 30-year loan. The average 15-year fixed mortgage rate dipped from 6.73 percent last week to 6.71 percent this week , according to Freddie Mac.

But 15- and 30-year mortgage rates remain at highs not reached since November 2023 .

That poses challenges for prospective homebuyers. August and September marked the two slowest months for home sales this year, the National Association of Realtors (NAR) reported this week.

“Further increases in mortgage rates in recent weeks mean fewer buyers can qualify to purchase a home ,” NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun said.

It also is a political liability for President Trump and the GOP, as Republicans face economic headwinds in the midterms.

Before the 2024 presidential election, Trump promised mortgage rates would fall to 3 percent during his second term.

Welcome to The Hill’s Business & Economy newsletter , I’m Max Rego — covering the intersection of Wall Street and Pennsylvania Avenue.

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Key business and economic news with implications this week and beyond:

Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren (Mass.) on Wednesday blasted the Treasury Department’s $1.2 billion fine of Bank of America as “a slap-on-the-wrist.”

The Supreme Court on Wednesday sided with Republicans a second time in a legal battle over television advertising costs in the lead-up to the midterm elections, prompting two liberal justices to dissent.

President Trump’s top cryptocurrency adviser is leaving the administration.

Producer prices rose by 1.3 percent from August to September, the largest jump in more than four years, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).

Branch out with more stories from the day:

Senate Democrats demanded answers Thursday from Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lee Zeldin about an agency study to detect the abortion pill mifepristone in drinking water.

Business and economic news we’ve flagged from other outlets:

KFC to switch to Coca-Cola beverages in U.S. restaurants for the first time in decades ( CNBC )

S&P 500 ends higher as traders shift from AI to healthcare ( Reuters )

The fierce battle to control how Americans buy and sell their homes ( Wall Street Journal )

White House press secretary Katie Zacharia said Thursday her California Bar exam results are “somewhat inconsequential” after reporting surfaced that showed she did not pass the examination. Read more

Eric Deters, the donor to President Trump whom former U.S. Ambassador to Greece Kimberly Guilfoyle reportedly asked to wire $100,000 to her American Express account, leading to her ousting from the Trump administration, sued her and her lawyers for defamation. Read more