NEW YORK, March 24, 2026, 15:27 EDT
Mortgage rates in the U.S. pushed higher Tuesday. Mortgage News Daily reported its 30-year fixed rate benchmark at 6.55%, a 6 basis point jump from Monday’s 6.49%. Bankrate’s daily check of major lenders put the national average at 6.43%.
The timing isn’t great for housing. The spring sales push kicks off with buyers still sharply sensitive to payments. Mortgage applications dropped 10.9% in the latest weekly Mortgage Bankers Association survey, and Bankrate pegs the current 30-year average at about $75.30 a month in principal and interest for each $100,000 financed.
Mortgage rates usually track moves in longer-term bonds more closely than the Fed’s benchmark rate, and Tuesday’s market action saw bond yields climb. Monday had brought some relief, Mortgage News Daily noted, as headlines pointed to possible Iran war progress, but by Tuesday morning that had disappeared. The 10-year Treasury yield hovered around 4.41% in the afternoon, according to their site. For reference, Treasury data show the 10-year closed at 4.34% on Monday—higher than 4.20% on March 20 and 4.05% back on March 18.
Other mortgage indicators echoed the trend, though direct comparisons can be tricky. Bankrate listed the 15-year fixed at 5.78%, the 5/1 ARM at 5.75%, and jumbo 30-year loans at 6.54%. Freddie Mac’s latest weekly survey, as of March 19, pegged the 30-year fixed at 6.22%, up from 6.11% the week before. The Freddie Mac average captures lender offers spanning the previous Thursday to Wednesday.
Rate watchers aren’t budging. “Higher for longer is still the base case,” Denise McManus of America One Luxury Real Estate/Xpert Home Lending told Bankrate. Mark Hamrick, Bankrate’s Washington bureau chief, added that “the path of least resistance is higher mortgage rates.” Meanwhile, Matthew Graham from Mortgage News Daily described Monday’s slip to 6.49% as just “a step in the right direction.” Bankrate
There’s a pulse in the housing numbers after that slower rate period early in the year. Existing home sales ticked up 1.7% in February, pending deals climbed 1.8%. Still, ING’s James Knightley called the market basically “not doing very much,” and a Reuters poll sees just a 1.8% gain for U.S. home prices this year. Reuters
Builders remain under pressure. March’s NAHB/Wells Fargo housing market index ticked higher to 38, but that’s still well under the key 50 threshold. Nearly two-thirds of builders are still relying on sales incentives, NAHB Chairman Bill Owens noted, with buyers holding out for better rates and harboring concerns about the broader economy.
Right now, it’s all about energy prices and how bonds react. Should oil prices ease up and Treasury yields follow suit, mortgage rates might reverse some of March’s gains. But if those factors don’t break buyers’ way, Lawrence Yun at the National Association of Realtors still sees the 30-year mortgage rate possibly hitting 7% this year. Hannah Jones from Realtor.com adds that high rates, elevated construction costs, and general uncertainty could put pressure on the spring market.
Relief remains elusive. The 30-year fixed rate dipped to 5.98% ahead of the Middle East conflict, Reuters said, citing Freddie Mac. But by Tuesday, daily figures indicate that much of the rate’s early-year decline has reversed.
