Average US long-term mortgage rate climbs to 6.51%, highest level in
nearly nine months
[May 22, 2026] By
ALEX VEIGA
The average long-term U.S. mortgage rate climbed this week to its
highest level in nearly nine months, driving up borrowing costs for
homebuyers during what’s traditionally the housing market’s busiest time
of the year.
The benchmark 30-year fixed rate mortgage rate rose to 6.51% from 6.36%
last week, mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday. Despite the sharp
increase, the average rate remains below 6.86%, where it was a year ago.
Rates have been mostly trending higher since the war with Iran began.
The closure of the Strait of Hormuz has roiled energy markets, sending
crude oil prices sharply higher — a key driver of inflation.
Mortgage rates are influenced by several factors, from the Federal
Reserve’s interest rate policy decisions to bond market investors’
expectations for the economy and inflation. They generally follow the
trajectory of the 10-year Treasury yield, which lenders use as a guide
to pricing home loans.
Expectations of higher oil prices and worries about big and growing
debts for the U.S. government and others have pushed up long-term bond
yields, causing mortgage rates to head higher.
The yield on the U.S. 10-year Treasury note, which was at 4.6% in midday
trading Thursday on the bond market. A week ago, it was at 4.47%. It was
at just 3.97% in late February, before the war broke out.
Meanwhile, borrowing costs on 15-year fixed-rate mortgages, popular with
homeowners refinancing their home loans, also rose this week. That
average rate climbed to 5.85% from 5.71% last week. A year ago, it was
at 6.01%, Freddie Mac said.
When mortgage rates rise they can add hundreds of dollars a month in
costs for borrowers, reducing their purchasing power.
As recently as late February, the average rate on a 30-year mortgage had
slipped just under 6% for the first time since late 2022. It’s hasn’t
fallen below that threshold since. It’s now at its highest level since
August 28, when it was 6.56%.
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 While average long-term mortgage
rates remain lower than they were at this time last year, their
recent increase has helped dampen sales so far this spring
homebuying season.
Sales of previously occupied U.S. homes were essentially flat last
month after declining from a year earlier in the first three months
of the year, extending a nationwide housing slump that dates back to
2022 when mortgage rates began to climb from pandemic-era lows.
Mortgage applications, which include loans to buy a home or
refinance an existing mortgage, fell 2.3% last week from a week
earlier to their lowest level in five weeks, according to the
Mortgage Bankers Association. Much of the decline was caused by a
sharp drop in home purchase applications.
The elevated mortgage rates are driving more prospective homebuyers
to adjustable-rate mortgages, or ARMs. Such loans, which typically
offer lower initial interest rates than traditional 30-year,
fixed-rate mortgages, accounted for nearly 10% of all mortgage
applications last week, the highest share since October, MBA said.
Home shoppers who are undeterred by rising mortgage rates are
benefiting from buyer-friendly trends in many markets, including
more properties on the market than a year ago and data showing home
listing prices have started falling in many metro areas, especially
in the South and Midwest.
"The spring season still offers real opportunity, though each uptick
in rates narrows the pool of buyers who can make the numbers work,”
said Anthony Smith, senior economist at Realtor.com.
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