Housing Market Update: Mortgage Rates Keep Buyers at Bay

A jump in mortgage rates helped push down applications for home loans for the week ending March 15, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association , signaling how rates are key in shaping activity in the housing market.The average contract rate for a 30-year fixed rate for a loan worth at least $766,550 increased to nearly 7 percent after falling below that level recently. The rise discouraged buyers, with mortgage applications falling 1.6 percent.

'Mortgage rates increased last week as incoming data showed inflation was still hotter than expected, which stoked concerns about the timing and extent to which the Fed might be able to reduce the fed funds rates this year,' Joel Kan, the MBA's deputy chief economist, said in a statement shared with Newsweek.'After three weeks of declines, the 30-year fixed mortgage rate increased to 6.97 percent.

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