Mortgage rates ticked down a little this week as experts point to ongoing stability in rates being a plus for some buyers, while still presenting challenges to first-time buyers.
The latest Primary Mortgage Market Survey® (PMMS®) released by Freddie Mac Thursday shows the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaging 6.65%, down slightly from last week’s average of 6.67%.
“The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage ticked down by two basis points this week,” said Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s chief economist. “Recent mortgage rate stability continues to benefit potential buyers this spring, as reflected in the uptick in purchase applications.”
Realtor.com Senior Economist Joel Berner commented, “We know that many prospective buyers are right on the margin of being able to afford a home purchase, so this minor improvement may be just what some of them were hoping for.”
But Berner also cautioned that first-time buyers still face the most obstacles.
“For most buyers though, especially first-time home buyers, this week’s positive news simply won’t move the needle,” Berner said. “Recent mortgage rates in the high-6% and low-7% range have proven to slow home sales relative to last year, so seeing them remain in this range this week will spell more bad news in the housing market.”
He said so far, the first quarter of 2025 has presented more financial challenges to homebuyers than it has opportunities, but added, “That being said, we still forecast more home sales in 2025 than in 2024, and that improvement will likely start to be seen in coming months as the peak homebuying season kicks off.”
This week’s numbers:
- The 30-year FRM averaged 6.65% as of March 27, 2025, down from last week when it averaged 6.67%. A year ago at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 6.79%.
- The 15-year FRM averaged 5.89%, up from last week when it averaged 5.83%. A year ago at this time, the 15-year FRM averaged 6.11%.
