New York, January 6, 2026, 05:55 EST — Premarket
- Bankrate pegged the average 30-year fixed mortgage rate at 6.25% on Tuesday, with the 30-year refinance rate at 6.60%.
- Mortgage News Daily’s daily index was 6.19% on Monday, while Zillow Home Loans listed a 30-year fixed offer rate of 5.99% as of Tuesday.
- The 10-year Treasury yield was around 4.18% in early trading; housing-linked shares were higher in premarket action.
The average rate on a 30-year fixed U.S. mortgage held at 6.25% early Tuesday, Bankrate said, as Treasury yields nudged higher in premarket trading. Mortgage News Daily’s daily index was 6.19% on Monday, down 1 basis point (0.01 percentage point).
The steady read keeps borrowing costs above 6% heading into the year’s first wave of home-shopping, with demand still sensitive to small shifts in monthly payments. For lenders and brokers, the question is whether rates can drift lower without a sharp slowdown in the economy.
Mortgage rates often follow moves in the 10-year Treasury yield, a benchmark for long-term borrowing costs. The 10-year yield was about 4.18% early Tuesday, up from about 4.16% a day earlier, Investing.com data showed.
Bankrate put the average 30-year fixed refinance rate at 6.60% and the average 15-year refinance rate at 5.92% on Tuesday. Zillow Home Loans listed 30-year fixed offers at 5.99% and 15-year fixed offers at 5.375%, while Bankrate’s listed 5/1 ARM — an adjustable-rate mortgage that resets after five years — at 5.59%.
Rate-sensitive housing shares rose in early trading. The iShares U.S. Home Construction ETF was up 0.8% and the SPDR S&P 500 ETF added 0.6%, while Rocket Companies jumped about 6.2% in premarket trading.
Bond traders are still digesting Monday’s data showing the U.S. factory sector contracted for a 10th straight month in December, with the ISM manufacturing index at 47.9; readings below 50 signal contraction.
Jeffrey Ruben, president of WSFS Home Lending at WSFS Bank, cautioned against expecting a quick return to ultra-low borrowing costs. “Mortgage rates are likely to remain higher than many borrowers would like, but not dramatically out of line with historical norms,” Ruben said. Bankrate
But a strong run of labor or inflation data could lift yields and push mortgage rates higher again, squeezing affordability just as buyers re-enter the market. Analysts polled by Reuters see the 10-year yield rising to 4.25% by end-2026, a backdrop that could limit any sharp drop in mortgage rates.
The next catalyst arrives Friday, when the Labor Department releases the December employment report at 8:30 a.m. ET.
