Mortgage rates hit a new high for 2026, marching closer to 7%
Elevated mortgage rates have weighed down the housing market
By Samantha Delouya, CNN
(CNN) — The global sell-off in the bond market is hitting the housing market, with US mortgage rates surging to their highest level of the year. That’s putting fresh pressure on home shoppers and homeowners hoping to refinance.
The average 30-year fixed mortgage rate rose to 6.71% this week, according to Freddie Mac. That’s the highest level since July 2025.
Mortgage rates are closely tied to the 10-year Treasury yield, which often moves in tandem with investors’ expectations for future inflation and economic growth.
The 10-year Treasury and broader bond market have been swept up in a global sell-off, as investors grapple with mounting concerns over the US conflict with Iran, the effects of higher energy costs on the economy and a gross national debt that has ballooned past $40 trillion for the first time in history.
Bond yields rise when bond prices fall, and on Wednesday, the 10-year Treasury yield reached its highest level since October 2023. On Thursday, bond yields dipped slightly.
Bond yields help set interest rates across the economy, so a steep rise in yields may not only push up the cost of mortgages, but also auto loans and other borrowing.
Many economists had expected mortgage rates to fall this year and, for a time, they were headed in that direction. But the start of the war with Iran in February upended that trajectory, as a spike in oil prices raised fears that inflation could flare up again, said Chen Zhao, an economist at Redfin.
Redfin expects mortgage rates to stay in the upper- and mid-6% range for the rest of the year, Zhao added.
Those elevated mortgage rates have weighed down the housing market, leading to fewer homes changing hands.
Pending home sales fell in July to their weakest level since the start of the year, according to the latest data released by the National Association of Realtors.
The rate increase is also putting refinancing out of reach for homeowners who had hoped to take advantage of lower borrowing costs.
Refinance applications picked up earlier this year when the 30-year mortgage rate briefly dipped below 6%, before the Iran war sent rates higher, said Jeffrey Ruben, president of home lending at WSFS Bank. Now, with mortgage rates marching toward 7%, refinance activity has cooled again, he said.
“[Refinance activity] even more so than home purchases is clearly impacted by interest rates,” Ruben said.
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