Mortgage rates

From lowering expectations about their ideal home to moving faster to close a deal, here's a look at five ways house hunters say they would react to average mortgage rates reaching 5%.

Mortgage rates declined over the past week as worried investors increased their purchases of 10-year Treasuries, according to Freddie Mac.

While purchase mortgages account for a growing share of overall volume, industrywide investments in more automated and efficient underwriting processes have helped lower instances of fraud.

An index of contract signings to purchase previously owned homes unexpectedly declined for a second month in May, reflecting a persistent shortage of available homes.

Mortgage applications fell by nearly 5% last week as concerns over foreign trade and tariffs outweighed other positive economic news, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

Home sales dipped in Ohio and across the nation last month, as prices climbed, mortgage rates inched up and would-be buyers were stymied by a persistent shortage of available properties.

Purchases of new homes advanced in May to a six-month high as sales in the South increased to the fastest pace since 2007, according to government data.

Since the bottom of the housing market in 2012, home prices have increased 75% but wages have only increased 13%.

With affordability down to its lowest level in nearly 10 years, average wages aren't enough to afford a home in 75% of local housing markets, according to Attom Data Solutions.

Mortgage rates slid over the past week and have now declined in three of the past four weeks, according to Freddie Mac.

Sales of previously owned homes unexpectedly fell in May for a second month as a lack of inventory and elevated asking prices weighed on demand, National Association of Realtors data showed.

Mortgage application activity increased 5.1%, rising for the second time in the past three weeks, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

Higher interest rates on home mortgages drove the share of loans used to purchase houses rather than refinance to new heights in May.

Despite the long, stratospheric rise of home prices in the U.S., the inflation-adjusted monthly payment on the median single-family home in 2017 was less than in 1987, when home prices were lower but interest rates were higher.

While rising mortgage rates are top of mind for the industry after last week's increase in the federal funds rate, the housing market should be more concerned about limited home inventory, according to First American Financial Corp.

Sentiment among homebuilders fell in June to match the lowest level this year, reflecting sharply elevated lumber costs, according to a report from the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo.

A declining share of cash home sales will drive purchase home originations higher than previously expected through 2019, according to Fannie Mae.

The high number of home sales both above and below the list price in May, combined with rising mortgage rates and prices, was a sign buyers are near affordability limits, Redfin said.

Though mortgage originations were down overall in the first quarter, home equity lines of credit spiked on higher home prices, according to Attom Data Solutions.

After declining for two straight weeks, mortgage rates reversed direction this week and rose to their second highest level this year, according to Freddie Mac.