Overview
- Freddie Mac’s 30-year fixed average ticked up to 6.10% from 6.09%, staying just above a more than three-year low, with the 15-year at 5.49%.
- The Federal Reserve left its policy rate unchanged after three cuts late last year, and mortgage pricing continued to track the 10-year Treasury near 4.24%.
- Mortgage Bankers Association data show total applications fell 8.5% in the week ending Jan. 23, with refinances down 16% and purchase loans off 0.4%, as refis made up 56.2% of activity.
- Different trackers show small divergences in averages, with Zillow reporting 5.99% for a 30-year loan on Jan. 29 and Bankrate at 6.18% in its latest survey.
- President Trump’s directive for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to buy $200 billion in MBS briefly lowered rates earlier in January, though details remain scarce and economists expect choppy moves and strained affordability to persist.