Mortgage Rates Hit 5% For First Time in More Than a Decade, Freddie Mac Says

By Will Feuer

Mortgage rates rose again in the latest week, with the average 30-year fixed-rate hitting 5% for the first time in more than a decade, according to housing-finance agency Freddie Mac.

In the week ending Thursday, the average rate on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage rose to 5% from 4.72% last week. A year ago this week, the average rate was 3.04%.

Average 15-year rates were 4.17%, up from 3.91% a week ago and 2.35% a year ago.

The average rate on a five-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgage, or ARM, was 3.69%, up from 3.56% last week. A year ago, the five-year ARM averaged 2.8%.

"This week, mortgage rates averaged five percent for the first time in over a decade," Freddie Mac Chief Economist Sam Khater said. "As Americans contend with historically high inflation, the combination of rising mortgage rates, elevated home prices and tight inventory are making the pursuit of homeownership the most expensive in a generation."

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(END) Dow Jones Newswires

April 14, 2022 10:14 ET (14:14 GMT)

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