WASHINGTON (AP) — Average U.S. rates on fixed mortgages jumped this week to their highest levels in a year, signaling slightly higher costs for homebuyers. But rates still remain low by historical standards.
Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday that the average rate for the 30-year loan rose to 3.81 percent, up from 3.59 percent last week. That's still not far from the 3.31 percent rate reached in November, the lowest on records dating to 1971.
The average on the 15-year loan rose to 2.98 percent, up from 2.77 percent last week. The record low of 2.56 percent was reached in early May.
Mortgage rates are rising because they tend to follow the yield on the 10-year Treasury note. The yield rose to 2.17 percent on Tuesday, its highest level in 13 months. It has since fallen slightly to 2.11 percent in early trading Thursday. Still, that's up from 1.63 percent at the start of the month.
Yields on the benchmark note are rising because investors are selling government bonds. That's largely because minutes of the Federal Reserve's last meeting showed several policymakers favored slowing the Fed's bond purchases, perhaps as early as this summer.