Homebuyers face the highest mortgage rates in two decades, a new report shows, as elevated borrowing costs have slowed sales in Southern Nevada and around the country this year.
The average rate on a 30-year mortgage was 6.92 percent as of Thursday, up from 6.66 percent last week and 3.05 percent a year ago, mortgage buyer Freddie Mac reported.
Mortgage rates have now reached their highest level since April 2002, Freddie Mac chief economist Sam Khater said in a news release.
Overall, strong job and wage growth are “keeping consumers’ balance sheets positive,” but “lingering inflation, recession fears and housing affordability are driving housing demand down precipitously,” he said.
Not long ago, rock-bottom interest rates were fueling a buying binge in Las Vegas, with the market reaching its most frenzied pace in years in 2021.
But house hunters pulled back in recent months, as a sharp jump in mortgage rates and higher home prices have collectively made it all the more expensive to buy a place.
On the resale side in Southern Nevada, buyers picked up 2,030 single-family houses in September, down 36.7 percent from the same month last year, trade association Las Vegas Realtors reported.
Also, 8,121 houses were on the market without offers at the end of last month, up 134.5 percent year-over-year, according to the association, which reports data from its listing service.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
Contact Eli Segall at esegall@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0342. Follow @eli_segall on Twitter.
Read More: Mortgage rates reach highest level in two decades, cooling home sales in Las