The 30-year mortgage average fell again Thursday, dipping another few basis points to land at 7.10%. Rates on 30-year loans have been bobbing in a range a bit over 7% every day but one in 2024. Most other loan averages meanwhile showed minor upward movement Thursday.

Because rates vary widely across lenders, it's always smart to shop around for your best mortgage option and compare rates regularly, no matter the type of home loan you're seeking.

National Averages of Lenders' Best Rates
Loan Type	New Purchase	Refinance
30-Year Fixed	7.10%	7.61%
FHA 30-Year Fixed	7.03%	7.33%
Jumbo 30-Year Fixed	6.57%	6.58%
15-Year Fixed	6.45%	6.66%
5/6 ARM	7.55%	7.66%

Today's Mortgage Rate Averages: New Purchase

The 30-year mortgage average gave up another 3 basis points Thursday, dipping to 7.10%. Aside from one day this year when rates dipped into 6% territory, the last three and a half weeks have seen the flagship average moving around between 7.04% and 7.24%. Thirty-year rates remain well below the historic 23-year peak of 8.45% registered in mid-October. Thursday's 15-year new purchase average was essentially flat, gaining just 1 basis point. Now at 6.45%, the average is about a third of a percentage point above the seven-month low of 6.10% seen late in December. Back in October, however, 15-year rates soared to a 7.59% peak, the most expensive level since 2000. The jumbo 30-year average held steady for a sixth market day at 6.57%, which is about a quarter point above its recent low of 6.31%. Though daily historical jumbo rates are not available before 2009, it's estimated the 7.52% peak reached in October was the most expensive jumbo 30-year average in more than 20 years. Several rate averages showed minor gains Thursday, though a handful held roughly steady. The largest increase was for 5/6 adjustable-rate loans, whose rate average climbed 7 basis points. Aside from the 30-year average, the only other loan type to see rates fall Thursday was VA 30-year loans, which saw a decline of 9 basis points on average.

National Averages of Lenders' Best Rates - New Purchase
Loan Type	New Purchase Rates	Daily Change
30-Year Fixed	7.10%	-0.03
FHA 30-Year Fixed	7.03%	+0.01
VA 30-Year Fixed	6.81%	-0.09
Jumbo 30-Year Fixed	6.57%	No Change
20-Year Fixed	6.95%	+0.01
15-Year Fixed	6.45%	+0.01
FHA 15-Year Fixed	6.83%	+0.02
Jumbo 15-Year Fixed	6.66%	No Change
10-Year Fixed	6.37%	+0.01
10/6 ARM	7.50%	+0.03
7/6 ARM	7.52%	+0.05
Jumbo 7/6 ARM	6.33%	No Change
5/6 ARM	7.55%	+0.07
Jumbo 5/6 ARM	6.30%	No Change

This Week's Freddie Mac Average

Every Thursday, Freddie Mac publishes a weekly average of 30-year mortgage rates, and this week's reading rose slightly to 6.69%. Back in late October, Freddie Mac's average reached a historic peak of 7.79%—its most expensive level in 23 years. But in the three months since, the Freddie Mac 30-year average has fallen more than a full percentage point.

Freddie Mac’s average differs from our own 30-year average for two notable reasons. First, Freddie Mac calculates a weekly average that blends five previous days of rates, while our Investopedia averages are daily, offering a more precise and timely indicator of rate movement. Second, the rates included in Freddie Mac's survey can include loans priced with discount points, while Investopedia’s averages only include zero-point loans.

Today's Mortgage Rate Averages: Refinancing

Refinancing rates moved more decidedly down Thursday than new purchase rates. The 30-year refi average fell 7 basis points, narrowing the spread between 30-year new purchase and refi rates to 51 points. The 15-year refi average meanwhile inched 3 basis points lower, while the jumbo 30-year refi average was again unchanged. Thursday's biggest refi rate improvement was seen for VA 30-year loans, though the dip of 8 basis points was modest. And gains were even more mild, with the biggest refi rate increase occurring for 20-year loans, rising just 4 basis points.

National Averages of Lenders' Best Rates - Refinance
Loan Type	Refinance Rates	Daily Change
30-Year Fixed	7.61%	-0.07
FHA 30-Year Fixed	7.33%	-0.02
VA 30-Year Fixed	7.34%	-0.08
Jumbo 30-Year Fixed	6.58%	No Change
20-Year Fixed	7.27%	+0.04
15-Year Fixed	6.66%	-0.03
FHA 15-Year Fixed	6.94%	+0.03
Jumbo 15-Year Fixed	6.66%	No Change
10-Year Fixed	6.55%	-0.04
10/6 ARM	7.59%	No Change
7/6 ARM	7.74%	-0.06
Jumbo 7/6 ARM	6.43%	No Change
5/6 ARM	7.66%	+0.01
Jumbo 5/6 ARM	6.30%	No Change

Calculate monthly payments for different loan scenarios with our Mortgage Calculator.

Lowest Mortgage Rates by State

The lowest mortgage rates available vary depending on the state where originations occur. Mortgage rates can be influenced by state-level variations in credit score, average mortgage loan type, and size, in addition to individual lenders' varying risk management strategies. The states with the cheapest 30-year new purchase rates were Mississippi, Vermont, Delaware, Iowa, Louisiana, and Nebraska, while the states with the most expensive rates were Alabama, Nevada, Oregon, Arizona, Georgia, and Washington.

What Causes Mortgage Rates to Rise or Fall?

Mortgage rates are determined by a complex interaction of macroeconomic and industry factors, such as:

• The level and direction of the bond market, especially 10-year Treasury yields
• The Federal Reserve's current monetary policy, especially as it relates to bond buying and funding government-backed mortgages
• Competition between mortgage lenders and across loan types

Because fluctuations can be caused by any number of these at once, it's generally difficult to attribute the change to any one factor.

Macroeconomic factors kept the mortgage market relatively low for much of 2021. In particular, the Federal Reserve had been buying billions of dollars of bonds in response to the pandemic's economic pressures. This bond-buying policy is a major influencer of mortgage rates.

But starting in Nov. 2021, the Fed began tapering its bond purchases downward, making sizable reductions each month until reaching net zero in March 2022.

Since that time, the Fed has been aggressively raising the federal funds rate to fight decades-high inflation. While the fed funds rate can influence mortgage rates, it does not directly do so. In fact, the fed funds rate and mortgage rates can move in opposite directions.

However, given the historic speed and magnitude of the Fed's 2022 and 2023 rate increases—raising the benchmark rate 5.25 percentage points over the last 18 months—even the indirect influence of the fed funds rate has resulted in an upward impact on mortgage rates over the last two years.

The Fed has opted to hold rates steady at its last three meetings, the last of which concluded Dec. 13. Though Fed Chair Jerome Powell indicated the rate-setting committee is leaving the possibility of another rate hike on the table, should inflation not progress further downward as projected, data released with the recent Fed announcement show that none of the 19 Fed members expect another rate increase. In fact, the committee's median expectation is that three rate cuts will be implemented by the end of 2024. The Fed's next rate-setting meeting will conclude on Jan. 31.

How We Track Mortgage Rates

The national averages cited above were calculated based on the lowest rate offered by more than 200 of the country's top lenders, assuming a loan-to-value ratio (LTV) of 80% and an applicant with a FICO credit score in the 700–760 range. The resulting rates are representative of what customers should expect to see when receiving actual quotes from lenders based on their qualifications, which may vary from advertised teaser rates.

For our map of the best state rates, the lowest rate currently offered by a surveyed lender in that state is listed, assuming the same parameters of an 80% LTV and a credit score between 700–760.