Rates

30-Year Fixed Mortgage Rate Today: 6.82%

Track current 30-Year Fixed Mortgage Rate and find the lowest available rate for your situation.

30-Year Fixed Mortgage Rate — Current Rates

6.82%
6.94%
6.79%
+0.03%
7.03%
6.08%–7.79%

Current 30-Year Fixed Mortgage Rate rates are averaging 6.82% as of December 2024, according to the Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey.

What Moves 30-Year Fixed Rates Specifically

Unlike shorter-term products, the 30-year fixed rate tracks most closely with the 10-year Treasury yield plus a mortgage-backed securities (MBS) spread. That spread — currently running wider than its historical average of 1.7% — reflects reduced investor demand for long-duration MBS in a higher-for-longer rate environment. When the spread compresses (as it typically does once the Fed's cutting cycle is clearly established), 30-year rates fall even without any change in Treasury yields.

  • Credit score tiers: The 30-year has the widest credit-based pricing spread of any loan term — up to 1.75% between a 620 and a 780 FICO score on some pricing grids
  • Loan-level price adjustments (LLPAs): Fannie/Freddie apply specific upcharges for cash-out purposes, investment properties, and high-balance loans that hit the 30-year product hardest in dollar terms since the balance is largest
  • Servicing value: Lenders earn more servicing revenue on 30-year loans due to the longer expected life, which occasionally lets them price slightly more aggressively than pure risk math would suggest

Rate Context

The 50-year average for 30-year fixed rates is approximately 7.7% (Freddie Mac data). Today's rates, while elevated compared to the 2020–2021 pandemic lows (which touched 2.65%), are near or below the long-term historical average. Buyers waiting for 3–4% rates again may wait a very long time.

Frequently Asked Questions

The 30-year carries more interest rate risk for the lender/investor — money is tied up twice as long, during which rates could rise, inflation could erode returns, or the borrower could default. Investors demand a premium (typically 0.5-0.7%) for taking on that extended duration risk, which is passed through as a higher rate.

Yes — during 2020-2021, the 30-year fixed averaged below 3% for an extended period, briefly touching 2.65% in January 2021, the lowest level in the survey's history dating to 1971. That environment was driven by emergency Fed asset purchases (quantitative easing) specifically targeting mortgage-backed securities, a policy tool unlikely to be deployed again absent a comparable economic emergency.

Rate-timing is genuinely difficult to execute successfully. A common approach: buy when you're financially ready and the home meets your needs, then refinance if rates drop meaningfully afterward. Waiting indefinitely for a specific rate target means paying rent (with no equity building) while home prices in most markets continue appreciating — often erasing any rate-timing benefit.