Real estate economists are pointing to this week’s mortgage rate activity as a possible bellwether for the remainder of the year.
The latest Primary Mortgage Market Survey® (PMMS®) released by Freddie Mac Thursday shows the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaging 6.64%, down one basis point from last week’s average of 6.65%.
“Over the last month, the 30-year fixed-rate has settled in, making only slight moves in either direction,” said Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s chief economist. “This stability is reassuring, and borrowers have responded with purchase application demand rising to the highest growth rate since late last year.”
Realtor.com Senior Economist Joel Berner commented, “This week’s mortgage rate readout will serve as an important benchmark for the rest of the year. President Trump announced a sweeping range of tariffs on Wednesday afternoon that have sent the markets recoiling, and the impact of which will be seen in mortgage rates reported in the coming weeks. The 10-year Treasury has dipped even further this morning as investors are exiting the stock market, so it’s likely that mortgage rates will continue to come down in the coming months as a result. This shock to the system will be felt in the housing market for the rest of the year.
“Uncertainty is no doubt front and center on the minds of prospective homebuyers, and many of them have seen some portion of their wealth invested in the stock market dry up,” Berner added. “It remains to be seen whether relief from mortgage rates will spur buyers to make a move in 2025, or if the broader economic conditions will slow things down. There has been encouraging news in recent months, even during these high mortgage rates, that home sales are picking up relative to a slow 2024. This week’s minor bit of relief may be enough to keep up this positive momentum, or the fallout from the tariff announcement may shake buyers’ confidence.”
This week’s numbers:
- The 30-year FRM averaged 6.64% as of April 3, 2025, down from last week when it averaged 6.65%. A year ago at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 6.82%.
- The 15-year FRM averaged 5.82%, down from last week when it averaged 5.89%. A year ago at this time, the 15-year FRM averaged 6.06%.
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