1-Year Low for Mortgage Rates

This week, government-backed lender Freddie Mac reported that the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 4.35 percent, a one-year low. The previous week, the rate was 4.37 percent.

The 15-year adjustable-rate mortgage averaged 3.78 percent, a decrease of three basis points, and the five-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgage averaged 3.88 percent. Realtor.com reports that even if mortgage rates stay low, economic headwinds remain for buyers. A recent consumer sentiment survey found that combined debts (including but not limited to credit card balances, medical debt, and student loans) were a major obstacle keeping consumers from buying a home.

Mortgage rates move in near lockstep with the 10-year U.S. Treasury note although sometimes it takes the mortgage market a few days to catch up to the bond market. Bond yields, which decline as prices rise, have been caught in “cross-currents,” in the words of Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell. The dragged-out U.S.-China trade talks have helped boost the attractiveness of assets considered safe havens. And more recently, yields have declined as Federal Reserve officials increasingly speak out in favor of moderating the pace of reducing the bonds they hold on their balance sheet.

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