The average rate on a 30-year fixed mortgage fell this week, according to AP and The Hill. Both cited new data from Freddie Mac, the mortgage buyer.

The rate dropped to 7.32% from 7.4% last week, AP and The Hill reported. It was the first weekly drop since late August, AP said. The Hill said it was the first since the week that ended on August 20. A year ago, the average rate was 6.19%, AP reported.

The rate on a 15-year fixed mortgage also fell, to 6.68% from 6.71%, AP and The Hill reported. Many people who refinance pick that kind of loan, AP said. A year ago, it was 5.44%.

Rates have been climbing since late February, when the US war with Iran began, AP reported. The war pushed up the price of oil and drove inflation higher, AP said. The Hill said the 30-year rate was 5.98% the week before the war.

Home loan rates tend to follow the 10-year Treasury yield, AP reported. That yield has mostly eased in the last couple of weeks. It was at 5% at midday Thursday, AP said. Earlier this month, it rose above 5.30%.

Last week, the 30-year rate held at 7.4% after seven weekly gains in a row, The Hill reported. It was the highest level in nearly three years, AP said. Even after this week's drop, the rate is higher than in all but one week since Thanksgiving 2023, The Hill reported.

High rates have slowed home sales, The Hill reported. Pending home sales fell 7.3% in September from August, according to the National Association of Realtors, The Hill said. They were down 11.3% from a year earlier.

Lawrence Yun, the group's chief economist, blamed "fast-rising" mortgage rates, according to The Hill. "Housing affordability is more affected by changes in mortgage rates," he said in a statement.

On Thursday, President Trump signed an executive order on housing costs, The Hill reported. It asks the Federal Housing Finance Agency to start a pilot program to cancel some mortgage insurance costs, The Hill said.

What we know: The average 30-year rate fell to 7.32% this week, Freddie Mac said.
What we don't: Whether rates will keep falling as the Federal Reserve meets next week.