Mortgages

The 30-year average rate got closer to 7% as central bank officials dashed near-term hopes of a cut, according to Freddie Mac.

Mortgage application activity had its largest decline in a year, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

For the first time since mid-December, the Freddie Mac survey reports mortgage rates over 6.7%.

The company was able release credit reserves because of actual and forecasted prices that boosted net income, CEO Priscilla Almodovar said.

The government-sponsored enterprise financed 955,000 mortgages last year, down from the 1.8 million loans it backed in 2022.

January volume increased 36% compared to the month before and the annual decline in activity was the lowest in almost two years, Optimal Blue said.

Only a few dozen mortgage firms could likely afford the $7 million ad for this year's big game, a marketing veteran said.

While the Freddie Mac survey reported just a 1 basis point increase from last week, Zillow's tracker found a 30 basis point rise in the 30-year fixed, more reflective of what happened in the bond market.

The majority of users are looking for new credit lines and others want to improve their scores. Credit monitoring by consumers may be a good indicator of both, Transunion found.

But Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac conducted no private-market sales of nonperforming loans early last year as adjustments were made to the program.