Good news for home shoppers – mortgage rates dipped again this week.
Freddie Mac reports its Primary Mortgage Market Survey shows the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 6.87% this week.
“The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage continued to inch down this week, reaching its lowest level thus far in 2025,” Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s chief economist, said in a statement.
“Recent mortgage rate stability is benefitting potential buyers, as purchase demand is stronger than this time last year. This is an indication that a thaw in buyer activity could be on the horizon.”
February began with an increase in mortgage applications, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. But Joel Kan, MBA’s deputy chief economist, attributed that to a slight dip in rates the previous week.
Kan said the average loan size for refinance borrowers increased, as these borrowers tend to be more responsive to a given change in rates. Purchase applications were down from the previous week’s level but were slightly ahead of last year’s pace.
In December, the combination of high mortgage rates and high home prices kept many buyers on the sidelines. There were so few buyers that 73,000 homeowners took their properties off the market, according to CoreLogic.
The data firms also reported that affordability tumbled to the lowest level in decades despite home price growth slowing from previous years. Growth in home prices continued, but there were stark divisions between the areas of the country with gains and areas that were at risk of price declines.