Mortgage rates near 8% as demand drops to lowest level in almost 3 decades

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2 years ago

October 6, 2023

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Mortgage demand plummeted to a 28-year low as the average long-term rate creeped up toward 8%.

According to leading real industry group Mortgage Bankers Association, the average rate on the benchmark 30-year home loan climbed to 7.53% this week — the highest rate since 2000.

A separate report on Bankrate showed that Thursday’s average on a 30-year fixed mortgage rate was even higher, 7.88%.

The rate was 6.75% at this time last year and mortgages below 3% were offered at the start of 2021. The mortgage rate hasn’t hit 8% since 1995.

Mortgage applications and applications to refinance a home have stalled dramatically, falling 6% and 7% for the week, respectively, according to MBA.

“The purchase market slowed to the lowest level of activity since 1995, as the rapid rise in rates pushed an increasing number of potential homebuyers out of the market,” MBA’s deputy chief economist Joel Kan told The Post.

The higher rates add hundreds of dollars a month in costs for borrowers, limiting how much they can afford in a market already unaffordable to many Americans.

They also discourage homeowners who locked in low rates two years ago from selling.

The lack of housing supply also weighs on sales of previously occupied US homes, which are down 22.3% through the first seven months of the year versus the same stretch in 2022.

In response, Kan noted that applications for adjustable-rate mortgages increased, making up 8% of purchase applications — up from 6.7% a month ago when interest rates sat around 7%.

ARMs typically offer lower interest rates, though they’re fixed for shorter periods of time.

Mortgage rates have been rising along with the 10-year Treasury yield, which has historically been considered a key benchmark for mortgage rates.

Thus, as mortgage rates near 8%, the 10- and 30-year Treasury yields have also reached new heights, hitting 4.8% and 4.925%, respectively, on Tuesday — both the highest since 2007.

The advances could keep upward pressure on inflation, giving the Federal Reserve reason to keep interest rates higher for longer.

In August, US inflation rose 3.7% from 2022. Though it’s still above the Fed’s 2% goal, it’s a stark difference from June 2022’s four-decade peak at 9.1%.

Inflation’s substantial cooldown in recent months has forced many home sellers to slash their asking prices to lure in potential buyers.

Those who don’t slash their asking price risk selling at a loss. Last month, a report by real estate brokerage Redfin revealed that home sellers in America’s major cities are already doing this.

San Francisco sellers had it the worst, Redfin’s report showed, as they are a whopping four times more likely than the average US home seller to take a loss.

Detroit is home to the second-highest share of homeowners who take a loss in their home-selling transactions, at 6.9%, followed by Chicago and New York, where 6.5% and 5.9% of homeowners take a loss in selling their homes, respectively.

Though the share of New York homeowners who reported a loss was half that in San Francisco, the cities were tied for the largest median loss in dollars, at $100,000, Redfin found in a separate analysis.

US

Donald Trump awarded FIFA peace prize at World Cup draw

Published

2 hours ago

December 5, 2025

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Donald Trump awarded FIFA peace prize at World Cup draw

US President Donald Trump has been awarded FIFA’s new peace prize at the draw for next year’s World Cup.

FIFA President Gianni Infantino presented Mr Trump with a large golden trophy – formed of hands holding the earth – and a gold medal, which he wore around his neck.

The certificate, which Mr Infantino handed over at Washington DC’s Kennedy Center on Friday, recognises the US president for his actions to “promote peace and unity around the world”.

World football’s governing body, which announced the annual award last month, said it would be given to “individuals who have taken exceptional and extraordinary actions for peace”.

World Cup draw latest: Home nations and Republic of Ireland await fate

Mr Trump said it was “truly one of the greatest honours of my life”.

He said: “We saved millions and millions of lives. The Congo is an example – over 10 million people killed. It was heading for another 10 million very quickly.”

He also pointed to India and Pakistan, saying, “so many wars that we were able to end, in some cases a little before they started”.

Ahead of the draw, Mr Trump told reporters he did not care about the prize, but noted that he had “settled eight wars” in nearly 11 months in office.

The United States, along with Canada and Mexico, will host the tournament in 2026.

Mr Infantino, who has built up a strong relationship with the US president, backed him for the Nobel Peace Prize earlier this year.

“This is what we want from a leader – a leader that cares about the people,” Mr Infantino said of Mr Trump.

The FIFA leader said to Mr Trump, “this is your prize, this is your peace prize”.

Mr Trump thanked his family, including his wife, first lady Melania Trump, and praised the leaders of the other two host nations – Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum – in his brief remarks.

Mr Infantino has often spoken about football as a unifier for the world, but the prize is a departure from the federation’s traditional focus on sport.

FIFA has described the prize as one that rewards “individuals who have taken exceptional and extraordinary actions for peace, and by doing so have united people across the world”.

The award comes during a week where Mr Trump’s administration has been under scrutiny for lethal strikes on alleged drug boats in the Caribbean and as Mr Trump hardens his rhetoric against immigrants.

The Nobel Peace Prize this year was eventually awarded to Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado, who said shortly after receiving the prize that she was dedicating it in part to Mr Trump for “his decisive support of our cause”.

Technology

Amazon had a very big week that could shape where its stagnant stock goes next

Published

2 hours ago

December 5, 2025

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Amazon had a very big week that could shape where its stagnant stock goes next

Environment

Podcast: Tesla texting and driving, Trump kills mpg, Aptera update, and more

Published

2 hours ago

December 5, 2025

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Podcast: Tesla texting and driving, Trump kills mpg, Aptera update, and more

In the Electrek Podcast, we discuss the most popular news in the world of sustainable transport and energy. In this week’s episode, we discuss Tesla allowing texting and driving on FSD v14, Trump killing CAFE’s MPG standard, an Aptera update, and more.

The show is live every Friday at 4 p.m. ET on Electrek’s YouTube channel.

As a reminder, we’ll have an accompanying post, like this one, on the site with an embedded link to the live stream. Head to the YouTube channel to get your questions and comments in.

After the show ends at around 5 p.m. ET, the video will be archived on YouTube and the audio on all your favorite podcast apps:

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We now have a Patreon if you want to help us avoid more ads and invest more in our content. We have some awesome gifts for our Patreons and more coming.

Here are a few of the articles that we will discuss during the podcast:

Here’s the live stream for today’s episode starting at 4:00 p.m. ET (or the video after 5 p.m. ET:

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