Mortgage rates in the US fell for the first time in six weeks, while sticking close to a two-decade high.
The average for a 30-year, fixed loan slipped to 7.18%, Freddie Mac said in a statement Thursday. Last week, rates hit 7.23%, the highest level since May 2001.
It’s just a slight break for house hunters struggling to afford a purchase in a market that’s starved of listings.
In one potential bright spot, the number of newly listed homes in the US climbed 3.5% in August from July, according to a report by Realtor.com that called the increase “seasonally unusual.”
While inventory continues to be in short supply, the uptick is “hopefully signaling a return in seller activity heading toward the fall season, which typically is the best time to buy a home,” Chief Economist Danielle Hale and Economic Data Manager Sabrina Speianu said in the report.
Jobless claims inch down
U.S. applications for unemployment benefits fell slightly last week as companies held on to employees in an economy that has largely withstood rapidly rising interest rates, intended to cool hiring and spending, for more than a year.
The number of Americans applying for jobless benefits last fell week by 4,000, to 228,000 the week ending August 26, the Labor Department reported Thursday.
The four-week moving average of claims, which evens out some of the weekly volatility, rose by 250 to 237,500.
Early this month, the government reported that U.S. employers added 187,000 jobs in July, fewer than expected, but still a reflection of a healthy labor market. The unemployment rate dipped to 3.5%, close to a half-century low.
