Mortgage rates fall for first time in three weeks

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Mortgage rates fell for the first time in three weeks, even as the 10-year Treasury was pretty much flat for the period, according to Freddie Mac.

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The 30-year fixed rate mortgage averaged 6.48% as of June 4, down from 6.53% one-week prior, the Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey reported. However, this rate is still at a level last seen back in September. For the same week in 2025, the 30-year FRM was at 6.85%.

Meanwhile, the other rate Freddie Mac currently tracks, the 15-year FRM was at 5.79%. This is down from last week when it averaged 5.87%, and a year ago at this time when it was 5.99%.

"With mortgage rates in the mid-6% range and income growth outpacing home price growth, housing affordability is marginally improving," Sam Khater, Freddie Mac's chief economist, said in a press release.

The 10-year Treasury did exceed 4.5% three times since a week ago, but did not close above this level. However, on June 3, it ended the trading day at 4.49%. By 11 a.m. the following morning it was down to 4.46%, less than 1 basis point higher than the May 28 close.

"While geopolitical tensions continue to move the bond market, mortgage rates are largely fluctuating near a recent nine-month high," Zillow Home Loans Senior Economist Kara Ng said in a June 3 blog post. "Mortgage rates would likely be higher still if not for cushioning from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which have been buying up mortgage-backed securities."

Ng called the first Federal Open Market Committee under the direction of Kevin Warsh, the new Federal Reserve chair, on June 17 as "a key watchpoint."

She expects the Fed to hold steady at this meeting. However, the Summary of Economic Projections will be released, and it offers "crucial hints regarding the future path of interest rates and could ultimately move mortgage rates," Ng said.

Lender Price data for the 30-year FRM posted on the National Mortgage News website had a rate of 6.73% as of 11 a.m. June 4, which was 1 basis point higher than seven days prior.

The MBA's Weekly Application Survey report results

The Mortgage Bankers Association's Weekly Application Survey for the period ended May 29 reported an 8 basis point decline in the conforming 30-year FRM, to 6.57% from 6.65% the prior week. The jumbo rate dropped 3 basis points to 6.65%, while the rate for Federal Housing Administration-insured loans fell 5 basis points to 6.26%.

But the MBA's Market Composite Index, a measure of application volume, fell 2.5% from the prior week on a seasonally adjusted basis and 13% unadjusted.

"The 30-year fixed rate decreased while the 5-year ARM rate inched up slightly, reflecting a flattening yield curve, as short-term rates are at risk of increasing while longer-term rates have dropped," said Joel Kan, the MBA's deputy chief economist, in a June 3 press release.

The 5/1 adjustable rate mortgage rose 1 basis point to 5.82%, the MBA survey found.