03/09/2026
Interest rates are coming down! See below:
March 9th, 2026 | Read Online
6% Mortgage Line Finally Broke
A small change can grab attention fast, even if home buying takes longer to respond.
What Happened
In Freddie Mac’s Primary Mortgage Market Survey released Thursday, Feb. 26, 2026, the average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage was 5.98%, down from 6.01% the prior week. Freddie Mac noted this is the first weekly print below 6% since September 2022, and it compared with 6.76% in the same week a year earlier.
That “5.98%” headline landed loudly because it crossed a clean threshold. Many stories framed it as “mortgage rates fall below 6% for the first time since 2022,” emphasizing the round-number break more than the small week-to-week change.
In parallel, demand data moved more slowly. The Mortgage Bankers Association reported mortgage applications increased in its weekly survey released Feb. 25, 2026, with the refinance component rising more than purchase activity (exact mix varies week to week, but the headline was an increase).