Mortgage Rates Climb Above 4% in the Week Ending March 17, 2022

Freddie Mac has released its Primary Mortgage Market Survey (PMMS) for the week ending March 17, 2022. The PMMS reports that the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 4.16% with an average 0.8 point, up from last week when it averaged 3.85%. A year ago, at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 3.09%.

The 15-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 3.39% with an average 0.8 point, up from last week when it averaged 3.09%. A year ago, at this time, the 15-year FRM averaged 2.40%.

The 5-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) averaged 3.19% with an average 0.2 point, up from last week when it averaged 2.97%. A year ago, at this time, the 5-year ARM averaged 2.79%.

In remarks prepared for the release of this week’s PMMS report, Freddie Mac’s Chief Economist, Sam Khater said, “The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage exceeded four percent for the first time since May of 2019. The Federal Reserve raising short-term rates and signaling further increases means mortgage rates should continue to rise over the course of the year. While home purchase demand has moderated, it remains competitive due to low existing inventory, suggesting high house price pressures will continue during the spring homebuying season.”