Fairweather PhD

Rates Slip To

The daily average mortgage rate dropped to 5.99% on February 23, the lowest level since September 2022, except for a few hours on January 9 when rates fell to the same level. A buyer on a $3,000 monthly budget can afford a $479,750 home with today’s mortgage rate. Compare that to the $471,750 home they could have bought at the start of this year when rates were hovering around 6.2%, or the $446,000 home they could have bought a year ago with a 6.9% rate. That means a buyer on that budget has gained $8,000 in purchasing power since the beginning of 2026, and $33,750 over the last year.