Today's Mortgage Rates - 05/30/2025

Rates Still Ticking Higher

Mortgage rates ticked higher again this week, but it appears as though the rise has stalled for now.

As reported by Freddie Mac today, the average offered interest rate for a conforming 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) increased by another three basis points (0.03%) to 6.89%, a 16-week high. Rates haven't moved all that far in recent weeks (or this year, for that matter), but given current level, any increase is unwelcome.

Average offered rates for 15-year fixed-rate mortgages saw a slightly smaller increase, posting a two basis point (0.02%) rise. This left the most popular shorter-term mortgage at a rate of 6.03%, a mark last seen in mid-April.

At present, a 5/1 ARM might offer a homebuyer a lower-cost alternative to a long-term fixed-rate mortgage, although the difference in rate between 30-year FRMs and 5-year hybrid ARMs shrank again this week. The Mortgage Bankers Association said that the initial fixed interest rate on a hybrid 5-year ARM rose by six more basis points (0.06%) to 6.22%, leaving the gap in rate compared to a 30-year FRM at sixty-seven basis points (0.67%). On a $300,000 mortgage, a borrower using this ARM would see a $132 lower payment per month and would save just over $10,000 in interest cost over the first five years of the loan.

Amid considerable uncertainty regarding tariffs and trade policies and their effect on inflation, mortgage and other interest rates have risen over much of the spring. This has damped sales of existing homes, the largest component of the housing market, and prospects for a near-term boost for the housing market aren't very good as housing affordability challenges remain considerable.

Conversely, sales of new homes have been doing fairly well, boosted by plenty of inventory, stable-if-not-lower prices and builder incentives. We discuss the state of the spring housing market in this week's MarketTrends newsletter.

An update to first quarter GDP on Thursday showed a still sub-par pace of growth in the first quarter, largely due to advance ordering of imported goods to beat the imposition of new tariffs. Since then, the picture for new or expanded levies seems to be getting more murky, and at least for the moment, slack GDP and perhaps few or lesser duties seem to have allowed interest rates to ease just a little. Mortgage rates should follow in the coming few days with a small slip of their own.

Each week in HSH's MarketTrends newsletter, we track and discuss economic conditions that affect mortgage rates and their impact on housing markets and consumers. Read the most recent edition of MarketTrends or subscribe for email delivery.