Mortgage Rates Rise for 3rd Time in 4 Weeks

Average interest rates on 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages rose to 7.58% this week, the third increase since the end of July, when the average hit a 17 1/2-month low. The average increased from 7.46% a week earlier, according to the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp. Rates have moved up and down this year, depending on the degree of nervousness in financial markets about inflation. This year’s peak in mortgage rates was 8.18% during the week ended April 3, after the Federal Reserve tightened monetary policy. The low was 7.36% during the week ended July 31. Fifteen-year mortgages, a popular option for those refinancing, averaged 7.12% this week, up from 6.99% a week earlier. On one-year adjustable-rate mortgages, lenders were asking an average initial rate of 5.62% this week, up from 5.56% last week. The rates do not include add-on fees known as points.