30-Year Fixed Mortgage Rate Jumps to 7.45%, Highest Since April 2024

The 30-year fixed mortgage rate spiked Thursday, cutting deeper into an already frozen housing market. The 30-year fixed rate surged to 7.45%, the highest level since April 2024 as bonds sold off and yields rose.

What happened

Mortgage rates rose sharply Thursday, as bond yields surged, with the average rate on the 30-year fixed hitting 7.45%, according to Mortgage News Daily. Rates rose Thursday morning, when Mortgage News Daily ran its daily survey of brokers and lenders, but as the yield on the 10-year Treasury moved even higher in the afternoon, it re-ran its survey and found rates had moved even higher.

While other outlets, like Freddie Mac, reported Thursday morning that the rate had just crossed 7%, that report was an average of the last week. The daily read from MND is the more current picture, and it is 45 basis points hotter.

Why rates are ripping

Since the day before, rates were up 19 basis points, from 7.26%. In daily terms, 7% was first broken back on September 10th following inflation reports that raised the risk of the Fed rate hike seen last week, per Mortgage News Daily COO Matthew Graham.

Graham added that a combination of Fed comments, higher oil prices, and stronger economic data have added to the pain since then.

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The affordability math

A new $500,000 mortgage over 30 years at 7.45% would cost about $3,479 a month in principal and interest. At 3%, the same loan would cost $2,108. That is roughly $16,450 more per year to borrow the same amount.

That kind of payment shock keeps buyers on the sidelines and locks existing owners into their sub-4% mortgages, choking transaction volume across the housing complex.

Options market and stocks to watch

Higher rates hit rate-sensitive names first. A few to keep on the radar:

• DHI — D.R. Horton and other builders take a direct hit as buyer demand thins at 7%+ rates.
• LEN — Lennar in the same boat; watch for incentive and margin commentary.
• RKT — Rocket Companies leans on refi and purchase volume, both of which shrink here.
• Z — Zillow is a proxy for housing activity; slower transactions pressure the model.
• XHB — Homebuilder ETF for broader sector positioning and hedges.

For more coverage of macro and rates, see other news.

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