Mortgage rates fall again, averaging 6.3%
It's the lowest 30-year, fixed-rate average in about a month


The 15-year, fixed-rate mortgage was lower than this time last week and last year, averaging 5.65% as of Thursday, according to Freddie Mac. (Paul Bentley/CoStar)







 




By Moira Ritter
April 16, 202612:38?PM ET




Key takeaways

Mortgage rates fell for a second straight week, with the 30-year fixed-rate averaging 6.3% and the 15-year at 5.65%, according to Freddie Mac.
The decline follows a U.S.–Iran ceasefire that has helped push mortgage rates down despite ongoing geopolitical risks.
Lower rates have encouraged more refinancing activity, but home purchase demand continues to soften as many buyers remain cautious.

Mortgage rate averages fell to a four-week low — marking the second week of declines.


 


The 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage averaged 6.3% in the week ended Thursday, according to mortgage ...

Are you ready for an adult spring break? The days are longer, the temperatures are warming, and it's the time of year when most of us are suffering from an acute case of spring wanderlust. After all, there's a reason why "spring break" is a popular vacation time! But we're, thankfully, well past the days of college spring breaks, with their overcrowded beaches and red Solo cups. Nor are we looking for a family-friendly vacation full of black mouse ears and amusement park rides. Instead, we are looking for the best spring travel destinations for adults.
After months of winter and years of a pandemic, we're pining for some bucket-list-level U.S. getaways for a grown-up spring break. We're talking about fun yet refined spring getaways in Wine Country or a charming coastal town, as well as all-inclusive adventures in some of the most incredible destinations in America. If that's the kind of getaway you're seeking, let the following adult spring break destinat. ...

The reasons to buy a home are easy: rental fatigue, the desire to build equity, tax benefits, stability, customization, and so on.  Harder is when to buy.  So many buyers attempt to “time the market” looking for that perfect storm of low prices and low rates.  But when that window hits the market it often comes without headlines.  Let’s look at a few market numbers from the Cromford Report to see if it supports that we have hit that window:
“Mortgage rates dropped over 2 months from July 15th (6.85%) to September 16th (6.1%), dropping payments by 7.5% across the board and reaching the lowest rate in over a year… while there was a wave of refinances, purchase applications were stubborn. This is a common phenomenon. While rates are actively dropping, it’s human nature to wait and see where they stabilize before taking action, hoping to save even just a few extra dollars off a payment. Rates ultimately bounced and settled around 6.m ...

The Federal Reserve has announced its second interest rate cut in a row, easing monetary policy as concerns grow about rising layoffs and economic fallout from the government shutdown.
Fed Chair Jerome Powell joined the 10-2 majority on the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) to vote for the quarter-point rate cut at Wednesday's meeting in Washington, DC.
Dissenting were Trump-appointed Fed Gov. Stephen Miran, who voted for a larger half-point cut, and Kansas City Federal Reserve Bank President Jeffrey Schmid, who voted to leave the policy rate unchanged.
The rare double dissent on opposing sides of the majority consensus highlights the widening divisions on the FOMC, where Powell acknowledges there are "strongly differing views" on the correct path forward.
Wednesday's decision takes the Fed's overnight rate down to a range of 3.75% to 4%, marking the second consecutive cut since September and taking the ...