Mortgage rates hit a new high for 2026, marching closer to 7%

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The global sell-off in the bond market is hitting the housing market, with US mortgage rates surging to their highest level of the year. That’s putting fresh pressure on home shoppers and homeowners hoping to refinance.

The average 30-year fixed mortgage rate rose to 6.71% this week, according to Freddie Mac. That’s the highest level since July 2025.

Mortgage rates are closely tied to the 10-year Treasury yield, which often moves in tandem with investors’ expectations for future inflation and economic growth.

The 10-year Treasury and broader bond market have been swept up in a global sell-off , as investors grapple with mounting concerns over the US conflict with Iran, the effects of higher energy costs on the economy and a gross national debt that has ballooned past $40 trillion for the first time in history.

Bond yields rise when bond prices fall, and on Wednesday, the 10-year Treasury yield reached its highest level since October 2023. On Thursday, bond yields dipped slightly.

Bond yields help set interest rates across the economy, so a steep rise in yields may not only push up the cost of mortgages, but also auto loans and other borrowing.

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Global bond markets are getting hammered. Here’s why that could make your life more expensive

Many economists had expected mortgage rates to fall this year and, for a time, they were headed in that direction. But the start of the war with Iran in February upended that trajectory, as a spike in oil prices raised fears that inflation could flare up again, said Chen Zhao, an economist at Redfin.

Redfin expects mortgage rates to stay in the upper- and mid-6% range for the rest of the year, Zhao added.

Those elevated mortgage rates have weighed down the housing market, leading to fewer homes changing hands.

Pending home sales fell in July to their weakest level since the start of the year, according to the latest data released by the National Association of Realtors.

The rate increase is also putting refinancing out of reach for homeowners who had hoped to take advantage of lower borrowing costs.

Refinance applications picked up earlier this year when the 30-year mortgage rate briefly dipped below 6%, before the Iran war sent rates higher, said Jeffrey Ruben, president of home lending at WSFS Bank. Now, with mortgage rates marching toward 7%, refinance activity has cooled again, he said.

“[Refinance activity] even more so than home purchases is clearly impacted by interest rates,” Ruben said.

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全球债券市场抛售潮正冲击房地产市场，美国抵押贷款利率飙升至年内最高水平。这给购房者和希望进行再融资的房主带来了新的压力。

据房地美（Freddie Mac）的数据显示，本周30年期固定抵押贷款的平均利率升至6.71%，这是自2025年7月以来的最高水平。

抵押贷款利率与 10 年期国债收益率密切相关，而 10 年期国债收益率通常与投资者对未来通胀和经济增长的预期同步变动。

由于投资者日益担忧美国与伊朗的冲突、能源成本上涨对经济的影响以及历史上首次突破 40 万亿美元的国家债务总额，10 年期美国国债和更广泛的债券市场都卷入了全球抛售潮。

债券价格下跌时，债券收益率上升。周三，10年期美国国债收益率达到2023年10月以来的最高水平。周四，债券收益率略有回落。

债券收益率有助于设定整个经济的利率，因此收益率的急剧上升不仅会推高抵押贷款的成本，还会推高汽车贷款和其他借贷的成本。

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全球债券市场正遭受重创。以下是这可能增加你生活成本的原因。

许多经济学家曾预期今年抵押贷款利率会下降，而且一度也确实朝着这个方向发展。但Redfin的经济学家陈钊表示，2月份爆发的伊朗战争打乱了这一趋势，油价飙升引发了人们对通胀可能再次抬头的担忧。

赵补充说，Redfin预计今年剩余时间里抵押贷款利率将保持在6%的中高位。

高企的抵押贷款利率给房地产市场带来了压力，导致房屋交易量减少。

根据美国房地产经纪人协会最新发布的数据，7月份待售房屋数量降至今年年初以来的最低水平。

利率上涨也使得原本希望利用较低借贷成本进行再融资的房主们无力承担。

WSFS银行住房贷款总裁杰弗里·鲁本表示，今年早些时候，30年期抵押贷款利率一度短暂跌破6%，之后再融资申请有所回升，但伊朗战争爆发后利率再次走高。他指出，如今随着抵押贷款利率逼近7%，再融资活动再次降温。

鲁本表示：“与购房相比，再融资活动显然更容易受到利率的影响。”