US mortgage rates climb after five straight weeks of declines

[BOSTON] Mortgage rates in the US rose for the first time in six weeks.

The average for 30-year, fixed loans was 6.72 per cent, up from 6.67 per cent last week, Freddie Mac said.

The recent stretch of declines bolstered demand for financing, pushing a measure of home-purchase loan applications for June to its highest level in more than two years, according to an analysis by Capital Economics of seasonally adjusted data from the Mortgage Bankers Association.

A bump in listings has given house hunters more choices and greater negotiating power, but prices remain high and uncertainty over the economy is weighing on consumer confidence, suggesting deals will remain subdued for a while.

In the four weeks to Jul 6, buyer contracts fell 3.5 per cent from the same period of 2024, the second-biggest decline since early February, according to Redfin. But home tours and online searches have climbed since the start of the year, the brokerage said. How sellers are responding is mixed, depending on the location.

“Some homes are moving fast, others are seeing multiple price reductions,” said James Gulden, a Redfin agent in Boston. “Prices are still as high as they have ever been, but with homes sitting longer, the market is slowly turning in buyers’ favour.”