Good News For Homebuyers As Mortgage Rates Fall For 4th Straight Week

Over the past few weeks, there has been a decline in mortgage rates. Despite this drop, the expense associated with borrowing remains high.

The 30-year fixed mortgage rate averaged 7.29% for the week ending Nov. 22, according to Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey, down from last week's 7.44% and up from 6.58% the same week a year ago.

The rate on a 15-year fixed rate is now averaging 6.67%, down 0.09 percentage points over the last week.

The successive weekly decrease in both indicators occurred as indications suggested the Federal Reserve has no immediate plans to increase interest rates. Policymakers have since conveyed that future interest rate hikes will only occur if there's a significant stumble in efforts to manage inflation.

"In recent weeks, rates have dropped by half a percent, but potential homebuyers continue to hold out for lower rates and more inventory," Sam Khater, Freddie Mac's chief economist, said in a statement. "This dynamic is reflected in the latest data showing that existing home sales have fallen to a 13-year low."

With lower rates, mortgage applications increased 3% for the week ending Nov. 17 compared to the previous week, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) data.

On a seasonally adjusted basis, purchase applications rose by nearly 4% over the week, with increases in both conventional and government purchase loan demand.

The average loan size on a purchase application was $403,600, the lowest since January 2023. "This is consistent with other sources of home sales data showing a gradually increasing first-time homebuyer share," said Joel Kan, MBA's vice president and deputy chief economist.

Meanwhile, refinance applications rose slightly by 1.6% last week but well below historical averages. The adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) share of activity fell to 8.3% of total applications, down from 8.8% the previous week.

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