Mortgage rates remained close to 6.8% again this week as financial markets continued to whipsaw on tariff news.
The average 30-year mortgage rate was 6.81% in the week through Wednesday, according to Freddie Mac data, little changed from 6.83% a week earlier. Average 15-year mortgage rates were 5.94%, down from 6.03%.
Mortgage rates have risen roughly 20 basis points in the weeks since President Trump announced his sweeping tariff policy. Although Trump opted to delay some tariffs, investors have grown jittery about investing in the US, sending stocks lower and bond yields higher.
Read more: When will mortgage rates go down? A look at 2025 rate predictions.
The 10-year Treasury yield (^TNX), which mortgage rates closely track, has been volatile in recent days after Trump repeatedly criticized Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell and demanded that he lower benchmark interest rates. It’s around 4.33% as of Thursday.
Mortgage applications are slumping amid the higher rate environment. Applications to purchase a new home dropped 7% through Friday from a week earlier, while refinancing applications were down 20%, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.
“The recent back and forth on tariffs and other economic policy has led to market turmoil and a general sense of unease, which can be felt in stubbornly high mortgage rates,” Hannah Jones, senior economic research analyst at Realtor.com, said in a statement.
Homebuyers are proving reluctant to come off the sidelines in the current economic environment. Existing home sales dropped 5.9% in March from a month earlier, to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.02 million. Those sales likely went under contract in February and early March, when mortgage rates were around year-to-date lows of 6.6%.
Claire Boston is a senior reporter for Yahoo Finance covering housing, mortgages, and home insurance.
Sign up for the Mind Your Money newsletter
Read the latest financial and business news from Yahoo Finance
