Mortgage rates drop to lowest since early February 2023 after Fed’s jumbo interest rate cut

Mortgage rates continued to decline this week, taking a little more pressure off America’s tight housing market as the Federal Reserve ramps up its efforts to keep the economy on an even keel.

Mortgage rates continued to decline this week, taking a little more pressure off America’s tight housing market as the Federal Reserve ramps up its efforts to keep the economy on an even keel. The standard, 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 6.09% in the week ended September 19, Freddie Mac said Thursday, down from last week’s 6.20% and substantially below a two-decade peak of 7.79% seen last fall. It’s the lowest level since early February 2023. The latest news on mortgage rates is an encouraging sign for buyers on the sidelines waiting for housing affordability to improve. A separate report from the National Association of Realtors released Thursday showed that sales of previously owned homes in the United States fell sharply in August, despite mortgage rates plummeting that month. But with mortgage rates continuing a downward trend, much more housing demand will likely be unleashed onto the market after the Federal Reserve finally cut interest rates this week for the first time in four years — and signaled more rate cuts by year’s end. Existing home sales, which make up the vast majority of the market, slumped 2.5% in August from the prior month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.86 million, according to NAR data. That was the lowest August sales level since 2010. Meanwhile, home prices continued to climb last month, with the median price of an existing home rising 3.1% to $416,700, the 14th straight year-over-year increase and a record for August home prices. “Home sales were disappointing again in August, but the recent development of lower mortgage rates coupled with increasing inventory is a powerful combination that will provide the environment for sales to move higher in future months,” Yun said in a release.