Mortgage Rates Highest in Nearly 6 Months

Thirty-year fixed-rate mortgages averaged 7.94% this week, the highest level in nearly six months, according to a national survey. The increase, from 7.84% a week earlier, put the rate at the highest level since the week ended Oct. 3, when it was 8.06%. On one-year adjustable-rate mortgages, lenders were asking an average initial rate of 5.71%, up from 5.61% last week and the highest since the week ended Sept. 26. Fifteen-year mortgages, a popular option for those refinancing mortgages, averaged 7.45% this week, up from 7.34% a week earlier and the highest since the week ended Oct. 3. The rates do not include add-on fees known as points.