The National Association of Realtors and Realtor.com issued a report saying a lack of housing supply remains a significant problem.
Mortgage rates increased for the third straight week and continue to hover near the 7% level, mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday.
Freddie Mac’s latest Primary Mortgage Market Survey, released Thursday, showed that the average rate on the benchmark 30-year fixed mortgage rose to 6.89% from last week’s reading of 6.86%. It marked the highest level since Feb. 6, when the rate on a 30-year mortgage also averaged 6.89%.
The average rate on a 30-year loan was 7.03% a year ago.
Home prices in the U.S. climbed for a fifth month as buyers competed for deals in the least affordable market in decades. (Elijah Nouvelage/Bloomberg via Getty Images / Getty Images)
“Aspiring buyers should remember to shop around for the best mortgage rate, as they can potentially save thousands of dollars by getting multiple quotes,” said Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s chief economist.
WHEN LEAVING THE HOUSE TO YOUR HEIRS BACKFIRES
The average rate on the 15-year fixed mortgage climbed to 6.03% from last week’s reading of 6.01%. One year ago, the rate on the 15-year fixed note averaged 6.36%.
Freddie Mac’s latest Primary Mortgage Market Survey showed that the average rate on the 30-year fixed mortgage rose to 6.89% from last week’s reading of 6.86%. (Ting Shen/Xinhua via Getty Images / Getty Images)
THESE STATES WERE THE HOUSING MARKET MVPS, ACCORDING TO REALTOR.COM
Meanwhile, the National Association of Realtors on Thursday said that its Pending Home Sales Index, based on signed contracts, dropped by 6.3% to 71.3 last month.
Economists polled by Reuters had forecast contracts, which become sales after a month or two, falling 1%. Pending home sales declined by 2.5% from a year earlier.
“At this critical stage of the housing market, it is all about mortgage rates,” said NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun. “Despite an increase in housing inventory, we are not seeing higher home sales. Lower mortgage rates are essential to bring home buyers back into the housing market.”
Reuters contributed to this report.