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Some mortgage rates have decreased today while others have increased, but either way, the shifts are pretty minor. According to Zillow, the average 30-year fixed interest rate is down one basis point to 6.26%, and the 15-year fixed rate is up one basis point to 5.58%.
Interest rates have fallen for the last two weeks, and now that rates are holding steady, it could be a good time to start applying for preapproval with mortgage lenders.
Dig deeper: 2025 housing market — Is it a good time to buy a house?
Here are the current mortgage rates, according to our latest Zillow data:
30-year fixed: 6.26%
20-year fixed: 5.94%
15-year fixed: 5.58%
5/1 ARM: 6.15%
7/1 ARM: 6.21%
30-year VA: 5.72%
15-year VA: 5.24%
5/1 VA: 5.89%
Remember that these are the national averages and rounded to the nearest hundredth.
Read more: How to get the lowest mortgage rates possible
Have questions about buying, owning, or selling a house? Submit your question to Yahoo’s panel of Realtors using this Google form.
These are the current mortgage refinance rates, according to the latest Zillow data:
30-year fixed: 6.30%
20-year fixed: 5.92%
15-year fixed: 5.59%
5/1 ARM: 6.24%
7/1 ARM: 6.55%
30-year VA: 5.73%
15-year VA: 5.43%
5/1 VA: 5.91%
30-year FHA: 5.96%
15-year FHA: 5.24%
Again, the numbers provided are national averages rounded to the nearest hundredth. Refinance rates are usually higher than purchase rates.
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A mortgage calculator can help you see how various mortgage term lengths and interest rates will affect your monthly payments. Use the free Yahoo Finance mortgage calculator to play around with different outcomes.
Our calculator also considers factors like property taxes and homeowners insurance when calculating your estimated monthly mortgage payment. This gives you a better idea of your total monthly payment than if you just looked at mortgage principal and interest.
As a rule of thumb, 15-year mortgage rates are lower than 30-year mortgage rates. When comparing 15- versus 30-year mortgage rates, know that the shorter term will save you money on interest in the long run. However, your monthly payments will be higher because you’re paying off the same loan amount in half the time.
For example, with a $400,000 mortgage with a 30-year term and a 6.26% rate, you’ll make a monthly payment of about $2,465 toward your mortgage principal and interest. As interest accumulates over decades, you’ll end up paying $487,570 in interest.
If you get a $400,000 15-year mortgage with a 5.58% rate, you’ll pay about $3,285 monthly toward your principal and interest. However, you’ll only pay $191,361 in interest over the years.
If that 15-year mortgage monthly payment is too high, remember you can always make extra mortgage payments on your 30-year loan to pay off your mortgage faster and ultimately pay less interest.
With a fixed-rate mortgage, your rate is locked in from day one. However, you will get a new rate if you refinance your mortgage.
An adjustable-rate mortgage keeps your rate the same for a set period of time. Then the rate will go up or down depending on several factors, such as the economy and the maximum amount your rate can change according to your contract. For example, with a 7/1 ARM, your rate would be locked in for the first seven years, then change every year for the remainder of your term.
Adjustable rates sometimes start lower than fixed rates, but once the initial rate-lock period ends, you risk your interest rate going up. ARM rates have also been starting higher than fixed rates recently, so they’re not as good of a deal as usual.
Dig deeper: Adjustable-rate vs. fixed-rate mortgage — Which should you choose?
Mortgage rates have been decreasing for about two weeks, but they’re fairly stagnant today. Economists also don’t expect drastic drops before the end of 2025.
In 2024, mortgage rates trended downward from early August to the Sept. 18 Federal Reserve meeting, when the central bank announced a 50-basis-point slash to the federal funds rate. Since that announcement, mortgage rates have mostly increased or held steady.
The Fed decreased its rate again at its November and December meetings (by 25bps each time). The trajectory of future mortgage rates will largely depend on the Federal Reserve’s decision on whether or not to cut the federal funds rate at its 2025 meetings.
The Fed decided not to cut the fed funds rate at its Jan. 29 meeting. According to the CME FedWatch tool, there’s currently a 91% chance that the rate remains unchanged at the March meeting too. This means rates probably won’t significantly drop in the next couple of months.
Dig deeper: Understanding the Fed’s rate decisions — Do we want high or low interest rates?
According to Zillow data, today’s 30-year fixed rate for purchases is 6.26%, and the 30-year refinance rate is 6.30%. These are the national averages, so keep in mind the average in your state or city could be different. Your rate will also vary depending on your personal finances.
Mortgage rates will probably gradually drop throughout 2025, but they’re unlikely to plummet anytime soon.
Mortgage rates should go down in 2025, though probably not as drastically as many expected a few months ago. Any decreases may be relatively small depending on the economy, inflation, and the Fed.
A mortgage preapproval will give you a good idea of your home loan options, price range, and how much your monthly payment might be. Learn how to get preapproved.
Mortgage preapproval does hurt your credit score, but it’s a relatively small hit that doesn’t last too long. Learn how to minimize the damage to your score.
When you apply for mortgage preapproval, you need documents showing your identity, income, assets, and debts. Learn how to prepare for a preapproval application.
The best mortgage refinance companies charge low interest rates and fees, and they often have unique perks for customers. Find your best refinance lender.
A rate-and-term refinance replaces your original mortgage with a new one with a different mortgage rate and term length. Find out if it’s a good fit.
How do you know when to refinance your mortgage? Lower interest rates are only one sign that it could be time. Learn more about when to refinance.
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Today’s mortgage rates
Today’s mortgage refinance rates
Yahoo Finance mortgage calculator
30-year vs. 15-year fixed mortgage rates
Fixed-rate vs. adjustable-rate mortgages
When will mortgage rates finally drop?
Mortgage rates today: FAQs
Refinance interest rates
What is today’s 30-year fixed rate?
Are mortgage rates expected to drop?
Will mortgage rates go down in 2025?
Read More
How to get a mortgage preapproval
Does mortgage preapproval hurt your credit score?
What documents do I need for mortgage loan preapproval?
Best mortgage refinance lenders of March 2025
Rate-and-term refinance: What it is and how it works
6 times when it makes sense to refinance your mortgage
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Best mortgage lenders for bad credit of March 2025
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Mortgage Rates Continue Their Sinking Streak, Dropping 7 Consecutive Days to New 2025 Low
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Mortgage rates for 30-year loans dropped for a seventh day Friday, reducing the average to 6.55%. That’s now the lowest reading since early December. Rate movement was down for many other mortgage types as well.
Since rates vary widely across lenders, it’s always smart to shop around for your best mortgage rate and compare rates regularly, no matter the type of home loan you seek.
Rates on 30-year new purchase mortgages have fallen daily for seven consecutive days, with a Friday decline lowering the average to 6.55%. That’s now almost a 30-point drop since Feb. 19, and takes the average to its most affordable level since Dec. 9.
Back in September, 30-year rates plummeted—sinking as far as a two-year low of 5.89%. In the ensuing three months, however, the average surged almost 1.25 percentage points—before recently moving lower.
Rewinding further, the 30-year average notched a high 7.37% last spring, so today’s rates are significantly improved vs. 11 months ago. They’re also nearly 1.45 percentage points cheaper than the historic 23-year peak of 8.01% reached in October 2023.
Rates on 15-year mortgages subtracted 5 basis points Friday to average 5.68%—now its lowest level in more than four months. Like its 30-year cousin, the 15-year average sank to a two-year low back in September, falling as far as 4.97%. Though today’s 15-year average is elevated, it remains 1.4 percentage points under October 2023’s historic 7.08% reading—a high since 2000.
Jumbo 30-year mortgage rates meanwhile shed 2 basis points Friday, dropping to a 6.65% average. Like standard 30-year rates, the jumbo average is at its cheapest level since December. Back in September, jumbo 30-year rates plummeted to a 19-month low of 6.24%. Meanwhile, it’s estimated that the 8.14% peak of October 2023 was the most expensive jumbo 30-year average in 20-plus years.
Every Thursday, Freddie Mac, a government-sponsored buyer of mortgage loans, publishes a weekly average of 30-year mortgage rates. Last week’s reading dropped 9 basis points, lowering the average to 6.76%. As recently as Sept. 26, the average had sunk as far as 6.08%.
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Back in October 2023, however, Freddie Mac’s average saw a historic rise, surging to a 23-year peak of 7.79%.
Freddie Mac’s average differs from what we report for 30-year rates because Freddie Mac calculates a weekly average that blends five previous days of rates. In contrast, our Investopedia 30-year average is a daily reading, offering a more precise and timely indicator of rate movement. In addition, the criteria for included loans (e.g., amount of down payment, credit score, inclusion of discount points) varies between Freddie Mac’s methodology and our own.
Calculate monthly payments for different loan scenarios with our Mortgage Calculator.
The rates we publish won’t compare directly with teaser rates you see advertised online since those rates are cherry-picked as the most attractive vs. the averages you see here. Teaser rates may involve paying points in advance or may be based on a hypothetical borrower with an ultra-high credit score or for a smaller-than-typical loan. The rate you ultimately secure will be based on factors like your credit score, income, and more, so it can vary from the averages you see here.
Your monthly mortgage payment will depend on your home price, down payment, loan term, property taxes, homeowners insurance, and interest rate on the loan (which is highly dependent on your credit score). Use the inputs below to get a sense of what your monthly mortgage payment could end up being.
Mortgage rates are determined by a complex interaction of macroeconomic and industry factors, such as:
Because any number of these can cause fluctuations simultaneously, 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 November 2021, the Fed began tapering its bond purchases downward, making sizable reductions each month until reaching net zero in March 2022.
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Between that time and July 2023, the Fed aggressively raised the federal funds rate to fight decades-high inflation. While the fed funds rate can influence mortgage rates, it doesn’t directly do so. In fact, the fed funds rate and mortgage rates can move in opposite directions.
But given the historic speed and magnitude of the Fed’s 2022 and 2023 rate increases—raising the benchmark rate 5.25 percentage points over 16 months—even the indirect influence of the fed funds rate has resulted in a dramatic upward impact on mortgage rates over the last two years.
The Fed maintained the federal funds rate at its peak level for almost 14 months, beginning in July 2023. But in September, the central bank announced a first rate cut of 0.50 percentage points, and then followed that with quarter-point reductions in November and December.
For its first meeting of the new year, however, the Fed opted to hold rates steady—and it’s possible the central bank may not make another rate cut for months. At their Dec. 18 meeting, the Fed released its quarterly rate forecast, which showed that, at that time, the central bankers’ median expectation for the coming year was just two quarter-point rate cuts.
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With a total of eight rate-setting meetings scheduled per year, that means we could see multiple rate-hold announcements in 2025.
The national and state averages cited above are provided as is via the Zillow Mortgage API, assuming a loan-to-value (LTV) ratio of 80% (i.e., a down payment of at least 20%) and an applicant credit score in the 680–739 range. The resulting rates represent what borrowers should expect when receiving quotes from lenders based on their qualifications, which may vary from advertised teaser rates. © Zillow, Inc., 2024. Use is subject to the Zillow Terms of Use.
Today’s New Purchase Mortgage Rate Averages
The Weekly Freddie Mac Average
What Causes Mortgage Rates to Rise or Fall?
How We Track Mortgage Rates
| National Averages of Lenders’ Best Mortgage Rates | |
|---|---|
| Loan Type | New Purchase |
| 30-Year Fixed | 6.55% |
| FHA 30-Year Fixed | 6.76% |
| 15-Year Fixed | 5.68% |
| Jumbo 30-Year Fixed | 6.65% |
| 5/6 ARM | 7.15% |
| Provided via the Zillow Mortgage API | |
| National Averages of Lenders’ Best Rates – New Purchase | ||
|---|---|---|
| Loan Type | New Purchase Rates | Daily Change |
| 30-Year Fixed | 6.55% | -0.04 |
| FHA 30-Year Fixed | 6.76% | No Change |
| VA 30-Year Fixed | 6.06% | -0.05 |
| 20-Year Fixed | 6.27% | No Change |
| 15-Year Fixed | 5.68% | -0.05 |
| FHA 15-Year Fixed | 6.46% | No Change |
| 10-Year Fixed | 5.61% | +0.07 |
| 7/6 ARM | 7.11% | -0.05 |
| 5/6 ARM | 7.15% | -0.05 |
| Jumbo 30-Year Fixed | 6.65% | -0.02 |
| Jumbo 15-Year Fixed | 6.72% | -0.05 |
| Jumbo 7/6 ARM | 7.00% | -0.05 |
| Jumbo 5/6 ARM | 7.00% | +0.01 |
| Provided via the Zillow Mortgage API | ||
Will mortgage rates allow for ‘peak’ homebuying season?
Pending home sales are down 3% YoY, a decline from +5% YoY in Q4 2024
Over the last two months with economic uncertainty, the bond market has responded and the yield for the 10-year Treasury has declined by 60 basis points from 4.8% to 4.2%. The 30-year fixed mortgage has followed suit, recently falling as low as 6.75%, the lowest level since mid-December.
It’s quite obvious that stubbornly high mortgage rates slowed down early season homebuyers in the first quarter of 2025. Our weekly pending home sales data continues to run about 3% below last year.
This is after Q4 2024 was 5% above the year prior. That’s a pretty notable swing.
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Mortgage rate volatility has slowed, but a big decline in 2025 is unlikely
February 25, 2025
In “LendingLife”
More chilly data on the housing market: Pending home sales drop
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In “Housing Market”
Despite earning a day one executive order, housing received only a brief mention in the president’s first major speech of his second term.
