The cost of getting a home loan has gone down a bit this week.
The average rate for a 30-year mortgage is now 6.87%, which is the lowest it’s been since early April. This information comes from Freddie Mac, an agency that buys mortgages.
This is the third week in a row that rates have gone down. For most of the past year, rates have been around 7%. Higher rates can make monthly payments much more expensive for people buying homes.
The rates for 15-year mortgages, which some homeowners use to refinance their loans, also went down a little this week to 6.13%.
Sam Khater, an economist at Freddie Mac, says rates are falling because inflation seems to be slowing down, and people think the Federal Reserve might lower interest rates soon.
Mortgage rates are affected by several things, including how the bond market reacts to the Federal Reserve’s decisions and changes in the 10-year Treasury yield.
Recently, some economic reports have shown slower growth, which could help keep inflation under control. This might convince the Federal Reserve to start lowering its main interest rate, which is currently at its highest level in over 20 years.
Last week, Federal Reserve officials said inflation has gotten closer to their 2% target. They hinted that they might lower interest rates once this year, which is less than the three times they had previously suggested.
Experts say that mortgage rates probably won’t go down much until the Federal Reserve actually starts lowering its rates.
The current high mortgage rates have made it hard for many people to buy homes. This led to fewer home sales in March and April, as buyers struggled with high borrowing costs and home prices.
The Associated Press contributed to this article.