US fixed 30-year mortgage rate hits three-month high amid Iran war

WASHINGTON - The average rate on the popular U.S. 30-year fixed-rate mortgage surged ​to a three-month high this week as war in the Middle ⁠East stoked inflation fears, dealing a ‌blow to the Trump ​administration’s efforts to make housing more affordable.

The 30-year fixed mortgage rate averaged 6.22%, highest ⁠since early December, up ‌from 6.11% ‌last week, mortgage finance agency Freddie Mac said ⁠on Thursday. Rising mortgage rates, if sustained, could ‌hamper home sales ‌during the typically busy spring season. 

The benchmark rate fell ⁠to 5.98% on the ​eve of ⁠the ​U.S.-Israeli war with Iran after President Donald Trump ordered Freddie Mac and Fannie ⁠Mae to expand purchases of mortgage-backed securities. 

It reversed course as ⁠the conflict drove up oil prices and U.S. Treasury yields. Mortgage rates track ⁠the benchmark 10-year ‌Treasury yield. Housing ​affordability ‌has become an increasingly potent ​political issue ahead of the November midterm elections.