The average rate on a 30-year fixed mortgage held steady for a second straight week, Freddie Mac said Oct. 15, staying at 7.40 percent after the same reading on Oct. 8. A year earlier the average was 6.27 percent. Buyers are now paying about 1.13 percentage points more for the same 30-year loan.
What the Oct. 15 survey showed
The number comes from Freddie Mac’s weekly Primary Mortgage Market Survey, which publishes on Thursdays at noon Eastern. “The average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage remained unchanged this week,” said Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s chief economist. The next reading is due Thursday, Oct. 22.
The 15-year fixed rate moved the other way, but only slightly. It averaged 6.71 percent, down from 6.73 percent the week before. A year ago it stood at 5.52 percent, so the 15-year loan is also about 1.19 points more expensive than it was.
The flat reading follows a climb. Freddie Mac’s weekly releases put the 30-year average at 7.03 percent on Sept. 24, 7.28 percent on Oct. 1 and 7.40 percent on Oct. 8. Over those three weeks the average added 0.37 point, and the latest week stopped the rise without reversing any of it.
What 7.40 percent does to a $250,000 loan
Anyone shopping for a home loan feels a rate change in the monthly payment first. On a $250,000 30-year loan, principal and interest come to about $1,731 a month at 7.40 percent. At last year’s 6.27 percent, the same loan would cost about $1,543, a difference of roughly $188 a month, or about $2,260 a year.
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Those figures are arithmetic on the survey’s averages, not a quote from any lender. Taxes, homeowners insurance and any mortgage insurance come on top. The comparison simply shows what the year-over-year jump in the survey rate adds to a typical-sized loan payment.
The 15-year loan carries a heavier monthly bill. On the same $250,000, 6.71 percent works out to about $2,207 a month, against about $2,045 at last year’s 5.52 percent. That is roughly $161 more a month, and about $476 more than the 30-year payment at 7.40 percent.
The trade shows up in total interest. Held to the end, the 30-year loan at 7.40 percent would cost about $373,000 in interest on $250,000 borrowed. The 15-year loan at 6.71 percent would cost about $147,000. Few borrowers keep a mortgage for the full term, but the gap explains why the shorter loan keeps its appeal.
The spread between the two loan terms also tells a story. The 30-year average sits 0.69 point above the 15-year average, at 7.40 percent against 6.71 percent. A year ago that gap was 0.75 point, so the two terms have moved closer together as both climbed.
Who the survey’s number really describes
Freddie Mac builds the average from mortgage applications that lenders submit through its Loan Product Advisor system. The data covers Thursday through Wednesday of each week and includes credit unions, commercial banks and mortgage lending companies. It reflects what lenders are offering, not what any single borrower will be quoted.
Freddie Mac changed where the numbers come from in 2022. Since Nov. 17 of that year, the survey has drawn on applications submitted by lenders rather than a lender poll, so the weekly average rests on actual loan files. The figure is still limited to the borrowers the survey describes.
The survey is narrow by design. It covers conventional, conforming purchase loans on single-family homes, for borrowers with good or excellent credit who put 20 percent down. A buyer with a smaller down payment or weaker credit should expect a different rate than the headline figure.
Fees are missing from the picture as well. Freddie Mac stopped reporting fees and points in November 2022, and it dropped adjustable-rate mortgages from the survey the same month. A lender’s quote can look lower or higher than the average depending on how many points the borrower pays up front.
The survey also covers purchase loans only. That matters for homeowners who are thinking about refinancing, because the 7.40 percent average describes people buying homes, not people replacing an existing loan. Refinance quotes have to come from lenders directly.
A benchmark for buyers still shopping
For a buyer who has already locked a rate, this week’s flat reading changes nothing. For one still shopping, it sets a benchmark: a quote well above 7.40 percent on a strong application deserves questions, and one near it is in line with the market.
The weekly pattern matters more than any one reading. The average has risen from 7.03 percent in late September to 7.40 percent now, and it held there for two weeks running. Whether the Oct. 22 survey extends the pause or resumes the climb will tell buyers which way the next few weeks lean.
Behind every rate is the question of what a household can carry. A payment about $188 higher than a year ago on a modest loan eats into the same fixed income that has to cover taxes, insurance, repairs and heating. That is why many older homeowners look at the costs of staying put as closely as the rate itself.
Is 7.40 percent the only housing cost worth shopping?
The mortgage rate is only one line in what a home costs to keep. Property taxes, power bills and repairs keep arriving whatever Freddie Mac reports on Thursday, and some of the programs that cut those bills only help people who apply for them.
The rate story is about the monthly payment; The Benefits Checklist covers a related job, the other costs of staying in the home. It scans 11 benefit programs, among them senior property-tax breaks and heating and cooling help, lists the 2026 income limits, and includes a 50-state phone directory.
See the 11 home-cost and benefit programs in the Benefits Checklist →
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This article was produced with AI assistance and edited for accuracy against the sources linked above.
Warren Cohen is a finance writer based in Phoenix, Arizona, covering personal finance topics including credit, banking, and beginner investing. He earned his degree in business administration from Arizona State University and began his career working in consumer finance, where he gained direct experience with lending and credit systems. He now writes for personal finance websites and fintech platforms, focusing on clear, practical content that helps readers make informed financial decisions.
