30-year mortgage rates inched slightly lower this week during a volatile period for bond markets but remained close to 6.9%.
The average 30-year mortgage rate fell two basis points to 6.87% this week through Wednesday, from 6.89% a week earlier, according to Freddie Mac data. The average 15-year mortgage rate rose slightly to 6.09%, from 6.05%.
The 6.87% level is the lowest seen so far in 2025, but mortgage rates have been stuck in an extremely narrow band after hitting a year-to-date high of 7.04% in mid-January.
Housing market experts expect that mortgage rates may stay stuck around these levels as financial markets whipsaw in reaction to fast-changing presidential administration priorities and fresh economic data.
On Wednesday, Consumer Price Index data showed inflation heated up in January and is running well above the Federal Reserve’s 2% goal, dampening hopes of lower interest rates. Ten-year Treasury yields, which mortgage rates closely track, initially jumped, and traders pushed back assumptions about the Federal Reserve’s interest rate-cutting timeline. At year-end, they were calling for two cuts in 2025, but they now see a single cut this year, and not until December.
But a day later, yields dropped just as sharply after President Trump pledged reciprocal tariffs on US imports but said they wouldn't go into effect immediately.
Read more: Mortgage and refinance rates today, Feb. 13, 2025
Though mortgage rates aren’t controlled by the Fed, they typically move based on expectations about the direction of benchmark interest rates.
“Mortgage rates are unlikely to drop much any time soon, as debt market investors demand higher returns to account for weakening spending power, and the Federal Reserve is unlikely to lower interest rates,” Realtor.com senior economist Joel Berner said in a statement. “The days of sub-4% mortgage rates are over, and if inflation continues to resist being stamped out, they may not be back for a long time.”
The near-7% rates kept mortgage applications for home purchases depressed again last week, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. Purchase applications dropped 2% through Friday compared to a week earlier, though refinancings rose.
Read more: 2025 housing market: Is it a good time to buy a house?
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Claire Boston is a senior reporter for Yahoo Finance covering housing, mortgages, and home insurance.
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