Mortgage Rates Rise Again, 3rd Week in a Row in U.S.

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According to Freddie Mac's latest Primary Mortgage Market Survey, the average fixed mortgage rate in the U.S. rose for the third consecutive week in January 2018.

Len Kiefer, Deputy Chief Economist at Freddie Mac says, "Rates keep climbing. The 10-year Treasury yield reached its highest point since 2014 reflecting expectations of broad-based economic growth. Mortgage rates, in turn, followed the surge in Treasury yields. The 30-year fixed rate mortgage jumped 11 basis points to 4.15 percent, its highest level since March of last year.

"The release of the December existing home sales data confirms that 2017 was the best year for home sales in over a decade. Will 2018 home sales outpace 2017? Homebuyer affordability will be a challenge, with mortgage rates moving higher and robust house price gains across the country. The FHFA reported that house prices increased 6.5 percent from November 2016 to November 2017, with all regions showing positive 12-month changes."

Freddie Mac News Facts

• 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 4.15 percent with an average 0.5 point for the week ending January 25, 2018, up from last week when it averaged 4.04 percent. A year ago at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 4.19 percent.

• 15-year FRM this week averaged 3.62 percent with an average 0.5 point, up from last week when it averaged 3.49 percent. A year ago at this time, the 15-year FRM averaged 3.40 percent.

• 5-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) averaged 3.52 percent this week with an average 0.4 point, up from last week when it averaged 3.46. A year ago at this time, the 5-year ARM averaged 3.20 percent.